SAN FRANCISCO (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th October, 2019) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have confirmed their positive stance on the creation of a bilateral business advisory council, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov says.
The idea of creating a bilateral business council was voiced during a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump in Helsinki in 2018. It was brought up again when the two leaders met in Japan's Osaka this summer.
"Minister Lavrov and State Secretary Pompeo reaffirmed their positive attitude toward this initiative at a recent meeting [at the UN General Assembly in September]," Antonov said on Sunday, at the Fort Ross Dialogue forum in California.
According to the Russian ambassador, despite US sanctions, the American business community has a strong interest in the Russian economy and there has been positive dynamics in trade between the two countries in the past three years.
"It [US-Russian trade] reached $61.1 billion in the first seven months of 2019. And there is an increase in purchases on the part of the United States. The US still has the largest share of direct investment in Russia," Antonov said, adding that the assets of about 3,000 US companies in Russia are estimated at $85 billion.
Speaking at the Fort Ross forum on Sunday, Antonov also pointed out that US-Russian cooperation in cybersecurity could help resolve a number of relevant issues.
"We reiterate our proposal to create a cybersecurity [cooperation] group. Professional dialogue in this area will help reduce misunderstandings and current concerns," Antonov said.
Speaking ahead of the Fort Ross forum on Saturday, Antonov stressed that the event played an important role in the efforts to improve Russian-American ties.
The annual bilateral Fort Ross Dialogue forum is a platform for communication between US and Russian parliament members, as well as cultural figures, entrepreneurs and various experts. It has been organized since 2012.
