Participants stand next to a giant screen broadcasting Russia's President Vladimir Putin's address during the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) in Saint Petersburg on June 7, 2024. Westerners are set to be few and far between at Vladimir Putin's landmark business forum, once an emblem of East-West ties, which kicks off on June 18, 2025 in the Russian president's home city of Saint Petersburg. (Photo by Olga MALTSEVA / AFP)