MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th August, 2020) Preparations are underway for Italian companies to attend the 2021 editions of Russia's Innoprom industrial fair and St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) notwithstanding the coronavirus-compelled cancellations this year, Vittorio Torrembini, the president of the Association of Italian Entrepreneurs in Russia (GIM-Unimpresa), told Sputnik in an interview.
Italy was set to be an honorary guest at the 2020 Innoprom fair in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg in July and to also send a large delegation to the annual SPIEF in June, but both events were canceled due to the coronavirus.
"Italy's interest is only growing despite the fact that things have changed this year because of the coronavirus. I think we will have more time to collect the most interesting initiatives and companies. We now have time to better think about what we will do in Yekaterinburg and St. Petersburg. So I think that next year will certainly be better than we expect," Torrembini said.
The Innoprom International Industrial Trade Fair, which is organized by the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade, has been held annually in Yekaterinburg since 2010. Each year, there is its own industry specialty to the fair and a partner country to chair it. The topic for 2020 was supposed to be Resilient Production, and Italy was selected as the partner country.
The SPIEF forum is one of the world's largest global platforms for economic consultations. Every year, it gathers high-level state officials, including heads of state and government, prominent businesses and experts, to discuss the most pressing economic issues on the regional and international agendas.
