Russia’s foreign affairs committee chairman, Mikhail V. Margelov, a close adviser to Vladimir Putin, will be at the World Affairs Council in San Francisco today for a forum on why the U.S. should care about Russia.
Margelov will be joined by U.S. trade expert Eugene Lawson, who helped engineer the $2 billion Oil and Gas Framework Agreement with Russia.
Despite cool political relations between the two powers, the Council notes, the one area of strong and solid cooperation between the two countries is in the commercial sphere.
Margelov and Lawson will discuss how political issues affect the economic relationship between Russia and the U.S., what Russia’s WTO accession will mean for U.S. business and how Russia’s integration into the global trading system might affect the broader U.S.-Russian relationship.
The event, sponsored by the U.S.-Russia Business Council and the San Francisco Global Trade Council, is open to the public.
IF YOU GO
Why should the U.S. care about Russia?
Where: World Affairs Council Auditorium, 2nd floor, 312 Sutter St., San Francisco
When: Friday, July 20, noon (check-in at 11:30)
Tickets: $15; $5 students; $7 co-sponsors; members free
Contact: 415-293-4600; registration@wacsf.org
