Washington softens stance on U.S. investors mingling with Putin and allies
Source: Reuters
Fri Jun 2, 2017 | 2:49pm EDT
By Sujata Rao and Yeganeh Torbati | ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA/WASHINGTON
For three years after Russia annexed Crimea, Washington officials quietly cautioned major U.S. firms about attending the annual St Petersburg forum, where investors mingle with President Vladimir Putin and his lieutenants.
This year, the first forum since Donald Trump became U.S. president, such cautions were not issued, according to four people familiar with preparations for U.S. companies to attend.
Washington's policy toward Russia is essentially unchanged under Trump, with the United States committed to maintaining sanctions on Moscow unless it complies with international demands about Ukraine.
But its approach this year to the St Petersburg event - often described as Russia's version of the Davos forum in Switzerland - reveals a change in tone, according to some people who follow U.S.-Russia trade relations.
Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-economic-forum-trump-idUSKBN18T2PX
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