At the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum a week before 15 June 2026, the US delegation was the largest.
Foreign AffairsInternational
- Omissions
- The official SPIEF website (forum-spb.ru) contains a quote describing the US delegation as 'the largest ever', but the phrase is ambiguous: it could mean the largest US delegation ever at SPIEF rather than the largest delegation overall among all participating countries.
- Multiple sources confirm the US returned to SPIEF in 2026 after years of absence due to Western sanctions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, making the delegation's size notable in that context.
- Exact delegation size comparisons by country were not found in the available search results; the claim relies on a single official Russian source without independent cross-verification from neutral international observers.
- Sources
- PrimarySPIEF Official Website (forum-spb.ru)"First, I would like to say that the US delegation at this year's St Petersburg Forum is the largest ever, which probably came as a surprise for many of us." — statement from a meeting with Russian and US business leaders at SPIEF 2026.
- SecondaryInterfax"Delegations from 140 countries visited the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), which took place last week" and "More than 24,500 people from 142 countries took part in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum." Confirms US, Germany, and UK delegations were present.
- SecondarySpecialEurasia"Approximately 20,000 delegates from over 130 countries attended" SPIEF 2026, with analysis of Western business engagement including US participation.