MOSCOW, August 16. /TASS/. The return of Western businesses to Russia should be based on pragmatic partnerships and the transfer of technologies needed by the country, Russian Presidential Aide and Executive Secretary of the Eastern Economic Forum Organizing Committee Anton Kobyakov told TASS. 

"No country wants to voluntarily build an autarky. Competition is needed. It makes both the country and our companies stronger. We need the best management practices and technologies. How can we obtain these technologies? The president has made clear that the conditions will be different," he said ahead of the forum. "We no longer want to assemble some parts of their products. We have moved past that, and a good alternative has emerged in the East. Kobyakov said possible ways to work with Western companies include joint ventures with technology transfers and concessions.

"We need to bring in the specialists we need and would welcome joint work on complex, capital-intensive processing. We are also ready to cooperate on basic and applied research, including in the corporate sector, on an equal footing and in a win-win format. These are the key areas and conditions, only pragmatic partnerships," Kobyakov said.

The Eastern Economic Forum will be held on September 1-4 at the Far Eastern Federal University campus in Vladivostok, Russia. The main theme of the 2026 forum is "Developing the Far East for the Benefit of Its People." The forum is organized by the Roscongress Foundation with the support of the Russian government.

TASS is the forum’s general media partner.