Last year marked an often tumultuous period in US–Russian bilateral relations underlined by considerable change. How has the current climate impacted economic relations between Russia and its US partners? What are the primary factors affecting the business environment today, and how might economic ties develop over the medium term? What are the prospects for mutual investment, joint projects, and geographical expansion of companies? What steps are being taken at government level to support business and investment activity and how are businesses reacting to this support?
Moderators Victor Vekselberg ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Renova Group; President, Skolkovo Foundation Alexis Rodzianko ,
President, American Chamber of Commerce in Russia
Victor Vekselberg
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Renova Group; President, Skolkovo Foundation
Born in 1957.
Graduated with honors from the faculty of automation and computer engineering of the Moscow Railway Transport Engineering Institute (MIIT).
In 1990 Viktor Vekselberg founded Renova, an asset management company. Mr. Vekselberg currently holds office as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Renova Group of companies.
In 1996 he founded SUAL Group and served as its President until 2003 when he eventually chaired the Board of Directors of the Group.
Chairman of the Management Board of OJSC Tumen Oil Company from 2002 until 2003. Member of the Board of Directors of TNK-BP from 2003 until 2013.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of United Company Rusal (UC Rusal) from 2007 until March 2012.
In March 2010, Viktor Vekselberg was appointed as Head of the Skolkovo Innovation Center project. Viktor Vekselberg has been President of the Skolkovo Foundation since June 2010.
Alexis Rodzianko
President, American Chamber of Commerce in Russia
Alexis Rodzianko, President and CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, came to this role after three decades as a banker in New York and Moscow. He held senior positions in IFC Metropol, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, and JP Morgan in Moscow from 1995 through 2013. Previously he was a senior banker at Chemical Bank in New York in the Emerging Markets business of the bank.
He serves as an independent member of the Board of SKB Bank in Russia and is a member of the Board of Centurion Capital (a Russian microfinance company).
Before receiving his MBA from Columbia University in 1980, he served as interpreter at the SALT II negotiations in Geneva. He is a 1973 graduate of Dartmouth College.
A fluent Russian speaker, he owns the Moscow Polo Club and represents Russia at the International Polo Federation (FIP). He is married and lives in Moscow with his wife Inna.
Panellists Dirk Ahlborn ,
Chief Executive Officer, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies Kevin Ali ,
President, MSD International Bertrand-Marc Allen ,
President, Boeing International Eric Beranger ,
Chief Executive Officer, OneWeb Myron Brilliant ,
Executive Vice President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Andrey Bugrov ,
Senior Vice President, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors, MMC "Norilsk Nickel"; Vice President, Interros Holding Company CJSC Kirill Dmitriev ,
Chief Executive Officer, Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) Valeriy Draganov ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Coalco Development André Calantzopoulos ,
Chief Executive Officer, Director, Philip Morris International Anatoly Karachinsky ,
President, IBS Group Pablo Koziner ,
Vice President, Caterpillar Inc.; President, Solar Turbines Inc. Andrew H. Lane ,
Executive Vice President, Abbott Laboratories Felipe Pastrana ,
Vice President for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, AbbVie
Jay Pryor ,
Vice President for Business Development, Chevron Corporation Dmitriy Pumpyanskiy ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Tube Metallurgical Company (TMK) Daniel Russell ,
President, Chief Executive Officer, US–Russia Business Council (USRBC) Zakhar Smushkin ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ilim Group
Leonid Sorkin ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Vice President, Honeywell James Warlick ,
Partner, Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners Yury Shafranik ,
Chairman of the Board of Directors, SoyuzNefteGaz Alexander Shokhin ,
President, Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) Igor Shuvalov ,
First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation David Iakobachvili ,
Vice President, Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP); President, Orion Heritage
Dirk Ahlborn is a German-born entrepreneur. In the 1990s he founded several companies in the alternative energy and interior design sphere. He co-founded and became CEO of Jumpstarter in 2013, the company that developed the crowdsourcing platform JumpStartFund in El Segundo, California. He is also the CEO of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, a project initiated and incubated using JumpstartFund's crowd collaboration process.
Dirk Ahlborn is known worldwide for his outside-the- box approach to giving paradigm-shifting businesses life, leveraging the full power of crowd-collaboration, the Internet, and exponential technologies at the vanguard of the global sharing economy. Dirk Ahlborn’s two decades as a serial entrepreneur serve him well as CEO of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies. As CEO and Founder of JumpStarter, Inc., a California-based, crowd-powered online business incubator.
Mr. Ahlborn used JumpStartFund’s crowdfunding and crowd collaboration platform to greatest effect in co-founding HyperloopTT, considered to be the largest and most successful crowd-sourced startup in history.
Kevin Ali
President, MSD International
Kevin Ali leads the MSD International organization. The organization’s geographic scope includes Japan, China, Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Canada. MSD International accounts for 96 percent of the world’s population, and over half of MSD’s pharmaceutical and vaccines revenues.
In addition, Kevin has global responsibility for the company’s Diversified Brands business, a portfolio of mature products that plays a critical role in serving the needs of customers and patients around the world.
Prior to assuming leadership of MSD International in 2017, Kevin led the Emerging Markets region (Latin America, Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific) to several years of strong, sustained, and leveraged growth.
Over that period, he championed a strategic shift towards the company’s innovative products, the introduction of important commercial and development partnerships and a number of transformational agreements with key customers.
Kevin is the Executive sponsor of the company’s Enterprise Leadership Program (ELP), having personally guided the design and deployment of its predecessor, the Emerging Markets Future Leaders program.
Prior to Emerging Markets, Kevin was Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Bone, Respiratory, Immunology and Dermatology (BRID) franchise; Senior Vice President and Managing Director of MSD in Germany; Managing Director of MSD in Turkey; Business Unit Director MSD in Germany, Marketing Director MSD in Egypt, and Regional Product Manager for the Middle East. Kevin began his MSD career in 1988, as a Hospital & Specialty Sales Representative in California.
Kevin holds an MBA from Santa Clara University in California and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Development Studies from the University of California at Berkeley.
Bertrand-Marc Allen
President, Boeing International
Marc Allen is president of Boeing International and a member of the Boeing Executive Council. As president of Boeing International since 2015, Allen, 43, is responsible for the company’s international strategy and corporate operations outside the U.S., overseeing 18 regional offices in key global markets. His responsibilities include developing the company’s growth and productivity initiatives outside the U.S., forming new business and industrial partnerships, overseeing international affairs, enhancing Boeing’s local presence and providing global functional support. Allen reports to Boeing Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg. Previously, Allen served as president of Boeing Capital Corporation, a wholly owned Boeing subsidiary that arranges, structures and provides financing for Boeing’s commercial airplane, space and defense products. Prior to Boeing Capital, Allen served as vice president of Boeing International and president of Boeing China, responsible for leading the company’s business in China from its Beijing headquarters. Allen earlier served as Boeing vice president for Global Law Affairs and general counsel to Boeing International, leading the company’s international legal practice group from its inception. He was responsible for international operations’ legal issues, cross-border trade regulation matters, and international legal policy matters including the United States–European Union World Trade Organization dispute on aircraft subsidies. Before Boeing, Allen practiced law in Washington, D.C., litigating complex commercial cases for domestic and international clients. Previous government service includes an appointment as U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy’s law clerk, plus he has prior business experience in strategy consulting and start-up leadership. Allen is a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute and a member of the Trilateral Commission. He sits on the boards of numerous global trade organizations, including the U.S.-India Business Council, the U.S.-UAE Business Council and the U.S.-Saudi Arabia Business Council. He is a native of Southern California in the United States and received his law degree from Yale Law School and his bachelor’s degree summa cum laude from Princeton University, majoring in political science with a certificate in economics. Allen is married and has four children.
Eric Beranger
Chief Executive Officer, OneWeb
Eric Béranger is the Chief Executive Officer of OneWeb, where he is responsible for driving the company’s growth towards its goal of providing affordable Internet access for everyone. Prior to joining OneWeb, he worked as the Head of Operations & Quality, Space Systems within the Airbus Defence and Space division created in 2014.
Since starting his career in 1988, he has held management positions in engineering, operations and finance at France Telecom, Société Générale, and Matra Marconi Space (now Airbus Defence and Space). At the inception of EADS in 2000, he was appointed Senior Vice President Marketing for all space activities, and successfully led the negotiations of the Skynet 5-Paradigm secure satcoms PFI project with UK Ministry of Defence. He was subsequently nominated CEO of Astrium Services at its creation in 2003 Under his leadership, the company has grown its revenues and workforce more than 15 fold from 2003 to 2012 and achieved major successes with contracts including Skynet 5 (UK), Satcom BW (Germany), Yahsat (UAE), Passerel (France) and the acquisition of Vizada at the end of 2011. In 2012 he became CEO of Astrium Satellites, and major milestones for earth observation satellites contracts were achieved. In 2014, as the head of Programs in the new organization “Airbus Defence and Space”, his contribution led to the award of the first electric commercial satellites contracts from SES and Eutelsat. In 2006, he was awarded the prestigious Chevalier de la légion d’honneur for his accomplishments in developing space activities. Born in 1963, Colonel in the public reserve of the French Air Force, he is a graduate engineer from the Ecole Polytechnique and Telecom Paris. Married with two children, his interests include flying -he holds a pilot's licence-, sports and science.
Myron Brilliant
Executive Vice President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
Myron Brilliant, executive vice president and head of International Affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, drives the global business strategy of the organization. He leads the largest international affairs team of any U.S. business association, representing the Chamber and its members before the U.S. government, foreign governments, and international business organizations. During his tenure as head of the international program, the Chamber has greatly expanded its global footprint with representatives in Beijing, Brasília, Tel Aviv, Istanbul, and Mexico City.
Brilliant’s responsibilities extend to management oversight of 14 bilateral business councils in countries as diverse as Brazil, Egypt, Japan, Korea, Colombia, Cuba, and the U.K. He has pioneered new high-level Chamber business strategic dialogues with business and government leaders in Mexico, China and Saudi Arabia. In addition, under his leadership, the Chamber has launched key regional programs such as the Israel Business Initiative and the Africa Business Center.
Before joining the Chamber in 1994, Brilliant was an attorney with Stewart and Stewart in Washington, D.C. He received his J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law and his B.A. in government and politics from the University of Maryland. He is married and has three children.
Andrey Bugrov
Senior Vice President, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors, MMC "Norilsk Nickel"; Vice President, Interros Holding Company CJSC
Andrei Bougrov is a Deputy CEO, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of MMC Norilsk Nickel and Member of its Management Board. He also served as Chairman and Member of the Board of Directors of MMC Norilsk Nickel and was Senior Managing Director of Interros Holding Company. Prior to that in 1993-2002 Mr. Bougrov was Russia’s Principal Resident Representative and Executive Director at the World Bank. Before joining the World Bank Mr. Bougrov was a senior staff member of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London.
He received a BA and a Master’s Degree with first class honors from the Moscow State Institute for International Relations, completed post-graduate studies and received a Ph.D. in economics.
Kirill Dmitriev
Chief Executive Officer, Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF)
Prior to becoming CEO of RDIF in 2011, Kirill Dmitriev headed a number of large private equity funds and completed a series of landmark transactions, including the sale of Delta Bank to General Electric, Delta Credit Bank to Société Générale, STS Media to Fidelity Investments, etc. At the beginning of his career he worked at Goldman Sachs and McKinsey & Company. He is Deputy Chairman of the Investment Council under the Chairman of the State Duma of Russia, Vice President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs and was appointed by the President of Russia as a member of the BRICS and the APEC business councils; he also was selected as ‘Young Global Leader’ by the World Economic Forum. He serves as a member of the boards of directors of Rostelecom, Gazprombank, MDMG, Russian Railways and a member of the boards of trustees of the Mariinsky Theatre and Moscow State University.
In 2011 he was the only Russian representative in the list of ‘100 most influential private equity professionals of the decade’ (Private Equity International). He holds a BA in Economics with Honors and Distinction from Stanford University and an MBA with High Distinction (Baker Scholar) from the Harvard Business School.
Valeriy Draganov
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Coalco Development
Valery Gavrilovich Draganov born in 1951.
1971 - 1999, served in the office of the customs authorities in the Ukraine, Primorsky Territory, Belarus, Estonia.
Since 1987 Vice-Chairman of the Customs Committee of the USSR, Chairman of the State Customs Committee (now the Federal Customs Service) of the Russian Federation (Yevgeny Primakov and Sergei Kiriyenko’s governments).
Deputy of the State Duma of the third, fourth and fifth convocations, deputy chairman of the Committee on Budget and Taxes, First Deputy Chairman of Committees on Energy, Industry, Chairman of the Committee on Economic Policy and Entrepreneurship. Since 2006 - Deputy CEO UC RUSAL. Board member of the RSPP. Member of the Bureau of the Russian Engineering Union. PhD in Economics. Honored Lawyer of the Russian Federation. Author of educational books on Customs Law. Writer.
André Calantzopoulos
Chief Executive Officer, Director, Philip Morris International
Mr. Calantzopoulos was appointed Chief Executive Officer and elected to PMI’s Board of Directors on May 8, 2013. He served as PMI’s Chief Operating Officer from the company’s spin-off on March 28, 2008 to May 8, 2013. Mr. Calantzopoulos served as PMI’s President and Chief Executive Officer between 2002 and the date of the spin-off.
He joined the company in 1985 and worked extensively across Central Europe, including as Managing Director of PM Poland and President of the Eastern European Region.
He holds an Electrical Engineering degree from Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne and an MBA from INSEAD in France.
Anatoly Karachinsky
President, IBS Group
Born July 12, 1959 in Moscow. In 1981 he graduated from the Moscow Institute of Railway Transport Engineers, Computer Science, Technical Cybernetics Department, specialising in System Engineering.
1981–1986: Computer Centre at the All-Union Research Institute for Railways.
1986–1988: Director, Prosystem (an Austrian company).
1988–1992: Technical Director, Intermicro Joint Venture.
1992–1997: President, IBS.
Since 1997: President, IBS Group.
Anatoly Karachinsky develops strategies and investment policy for the IBS Group.
He is actively involved in establishing a new information society in Russia and contributes a lot to the development of Russia’s economic IT potential.
Member of the Council on Competitiveness and Entrepreneurship attached to the Government of the Russian Federation.
Member of the Government Commission on High Technology and Innovation.
Member of the Interdepartmental Commission on Science and Innovation Policy.
Member of the Bureau of the Board of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, Chairman of the Union’s Committee on Professional Development and Professional Qualifications.
Member of the Public-State Council on the System of Independent Appraisal of the Quality of Professional Education.
Member of the Public Council attached to the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation.
Member of the Council of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation on Federal State Educational Standards.
Member of the Expert Council attached to the Committee of the State Duma of the Russian Federal Assembly on Information Policy, Information Technology and Communications.
Member of the Expert Council on Electronic Education attached to the Committee of the State Duma of the Russian Federal Assembly on Education and Science.
Member of the Expert Council on Information Technology attached to the Minister of Information Technology and Communications of the Russian Federation.
Member of the Supervisory Council of Moscow Exchange public company.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Luxoft, an NYSE traded public company.
Married, with two sons.
Pablo Koziner
Vice President, Caterpillar Inc.; President, Solar Turbines Inc.
Pablo Koziner is a Caterpillar vice president and president of Solar Turbines Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., based in San Diego, California. Solar Turbines is a global leader in the design, manufacture and service of gas turbine systems for the oil and gas industry and power generation applications.
Koziner joined Caterpillar's Legal Services Division in 2001 as an attorney within the organization's Latin American Commercial Division, based in Miami, Florida. He served as a senior attorney specializing in turnkey power projects and general commercial law until 2005. At that time, he assumed the position of Power Systems Regional Manager in Monterey, Mexico, with responsibility for Caterpillar's Electric Power, Petroleum, Marine and Industrial engine businesses.
In May 2008, Koziner was named district manager for Caterpillar's Latin America Commercial Division, based in Santiago, Chile, with the responsibility of working with Caterpillar's dealers in the distribution and support of Caterpillar products and services for the countries of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. In 2011, he was promoted to the position of East Region Manager in the Americas Distribution Services Division, based in Peoria, Ill. In October 2013, the Board of Directors named Koziner vice president of Americas Distribution Services Division. Koziner was named president of Solar Turbines Incorporated in January 2015.
Koziner graduated from Boston College in 1995 with a bachelor's degree in political science, and holds a Juris Doctorate degree from Boston College Law School.
Andrew H. Lane
Executive Vice President, Abbott Laboratories
Andrew Lane is Executive Vice President, Established Pharmaceuticals, leading Abbott’s branded-generic medicines business.
In this role, Andrew sets the strategic vision for his organization. He leads the effort to deliver high-quality, affordable medicines and innovative services to consumers, contributing to Abbott’s mission of helping people live their best possible lives.
He was appointed to his current role in March 2017. Prior to that, Andrew had served as Senior Vice President, Emerging Markets, and Divisional Vice President, Asia Pacific, for Established Pharmaceuticals.
Prior to Abbott, he was Vice President of Asia Pacific at Takeda Pharmaceuticals. During his 20-year career in emerging markets, Andrew held country and regional positions at Nycomed, Invida, DKSH, Novartis and Sandoz, gaining experience both in the proprietary and branded generics pharmaceuticals business.
He studied at University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand receiving diplomas in both Business Management and Accounting.
Felipe Pastrana
Vice President for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, AbbVie
Felipe is Vice-President for AbbVie EEMEA. He was appointed to his role in Jan 2017. He joined Abbott in December, 2008 as General Manager, Abbott Venezuela, and prior to moving to his current role he was General Manager for AbbVie Canada (Jan. 2011 - May 2014) and AbbVie Spain (June 2014- Dec. 2016). Prior to joining Abbott, Felipe held the position of Pharmaceuticals Commercial Director for Laboratorios Wyeth Inc. Colombia. Prior to Wyeth, he held the position of Country Manager for Zambon Colombia, S.A. and Business Manager for Latin America (Zambon Group - Italy), where he was responsible for operations along the Latin America Region (excluding Brazil). He started his career in Monsanto Colombia in 1994 until he moved abroad to pursue his post-graduate studies. Once he graduated and prior to returning to his home country, Felipe joined the medical Division of Johnson & Johnson - Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, as Product and Sales Manager. Felipe hold's a Bachelor of Business Administration from Universidad de Los Andes in Colombia and a Master of Business Administration of Thunderbird School of Global Management, Phoenix, AZ, USA. Felipe is fluent in Spanish and English.
Jay Pryor
Vice President for Business Development, Chevron Corporation
Dmitriy Pumpyanskiy
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Tube Metallurgical Company (TMK)
Russian businessman, born in 1964, graduated from Kirov Urals Polytechnic Institute in 1986. PhD in Technical Sciences, Doctor of Economics. Authored 4 monographs and over 70 scientific papers.
Heading TMK since 2002, Chairman of the Board of Directors at TMK and Sinara Group since 2005. Formerly held key positions at various Russian metal and pipe companies.
Member of the Management Board of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs, member of the Management Board of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, president of Non-Profit Partnership Russian Steel, Сhairman of the Supervisory Committee of Ural Federal University, Board member at Worldsteel and Industry Development Fund.
Mr. Pumpyanskiy was awarded a second class Medal of the Order for Merit to the Fatherland, a forth class Order for Merit to the Fatherland and Order of Honour, is a Russian Government prize winner in Science and Technology, was conferred an Honorary Metallurgist title.
Daniel Russell
President, Chief Executive Officer, US–Russia Business Council (USRBC)
Daniel A. Russell is the President and CEO of the U.S.-Russia Business Council. Previously, he was Deputy Assistant Secretary of State responsible for relations with Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, and Belarus and for international security and arms control issues in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs until July 2013. A career member of the Foreign Service, Mr. Russell served as Chief of Staff to Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns from 2008 to 2009, as Deputy Chief of Mission in Moscow from 2005 to 2008 and as Deputy Chief of Mission in Almaty, Kazakhstan from 2000 to 2003.
Since joining the Foreign Service in 1983, Mr. Russell has held positions in Washington and abroad, including Director of the Office of Russian Affairs, Director of the Office of European Political and Security Affairs, Consul General at the U.S. Consulate in Yekaterinburg, Special Assistant for Europe to the Under Secretary of Political Affairs, and First Secretary at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow. Mr. Russell has worked in the State Department offices responsible for relations with the United Kingdom and Cuba and served at the U.S. Embassies in El Salvador and the Dominican Republic.
Mr. Russell holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Maine and an M.A. in International Affairs from George Washington University.
Zakhar Smushkin
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ilim Group
Born in 1962 in Leningrad. Graduated from the Leningrad Technological Institute of Pulp and Paper Industry. After graduation he worked at VNIIgidroliz, a scientific research institute.
In 1992, together with a group of aspiring businessmen founded a forestry company Ilim Pulp Enterprise where he served as CEO until 2001. From 2001 to 2007 Mr. Smushkin served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of ZAO Ilim Pulp Enterprise and was involved in building Russia's largest vertically-integrated forest industry corporation.
Since July 2007 Zakhar Smushkin is Chairman of the Board of Directors, Ilim Group.
Leonid Sorkin
Chairman of the Board of Directors, Vice President, Honeywell
James Warlick
Partner, Egorov Puginsky Afanasiev & Partners
Ambassador James B. Warlick is one of the most respected senior diplomats, with decades of experience as a special envoy, negotiator, policy advisor, program manager, and educator. He has worked extensively with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and other CIS countries, and has experience in emerging markets around the world.
James has experience in working for the U.S. Government for more than 30 years. His senior assignments included: Special Envoy and the U.S. Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group (2013 - 2016); Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan in the office of the Secretary of State; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Bulgaria; Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs, with responsibility for all aspects of U.S. foreign policy at the United Nations and a number of other multilateral organizations; Director of the Office of European Security and Political Affairs, responsible for political-military and security issues for Europe and the former Soviet Union; Director of the United Nations Political Affairs in International Organizations; Principal Advisor to the U.S. Ambassador in Iraq, and Consul General in the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
Ambassador Warlick graduated from Stanford University.
Yury Shafranik
Chairman of the Board of Directors, SoyuzNefteGaz
A native Siberian Yuri Shafranik was born February 27, 1952, in a Russian worker’s family at Karasul village (Tyumen region).
Graduated from Tyumen Industrial Institute specializing in Electrical Engineering and Mining Engineering. Doctor of Economics (2006).
From 1974 to 1980 he held various engineering positions in the Production Association "Nizhnevartovskneftegas."
In 1980 he was appointed chief of engineering service of "Uryevneft". Between 1987 and 1990 – CEO of the production association "Langepasneftegas."
1990–1993 – The Governor of the Tyumen region.
1993–1996 - The Minister of Fuel and Energy of the Russian Federation. Y. Shafranik was directly involved in renewal processes for oil, coal and energy sectors of economy.
In 1997 Y. Shafranik became advisor to the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation. At the same time, he becomes Chairman of the Management Board of "The Central Fuel Company" – the largest refinery and oil retailer of oil products in the Moscow region.
In 2001 Y. Shafranik created and headed the Interstate Oil Company "SoyuzNefteGaz."
Besides being Chairman of the Board of the Union of Oil and Gas Producers of Russia, Y. Shafranik is also Chairman of the Supreme Mining Council of Russia, Chairman of the Committee on Energy Strategy and the development of the fuel and energy complex of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation, President of the Foundation "World politics and resources”, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Energy Strategy, author of several books on Russian oil and gas industry.
He was awarded with “the Order of Friendship of Peoples" (1988), “the Order of Honour”(2000) and many medals, winner of “the Award of the Government of the Russian Federation” (1999), “Honored Worker of the Oil and Gas Industry of the Russian Federation” (2010).
Y. Shafranik is married and has two children.
Alexander Shokhin
President, Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP)
Alexander N. Shokhin was born 25 December, 1951. Graduated from the Moscow State University in 1974. Doctor of Economics, Professor. Twice, in 1991-1994 and in 1998, Mr. Shokhin held the post of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation. In 1991-1994 he also held positions of Minister of Labor, Minister of Economics, Chairman of the Russian Agency for International Cooperation and Development. From 1994 to 2002 – Deputy of the State Duma, with the posts of First Vice Chairman of the State Duma, leader of the Duma party bloc 'Our Home is Russia', Head of the Duma Committee on Credit Institutions and Capital Markets. Since 1995 - President of the National Research University – Higher School of Economics. From 2002 to 2006 – Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Investment Group "Renaissance Capital". From 2005 to 2009 – member of the RF Public Chamber. Since 2005 – President of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs. Mr. Shokhin is a member of several deliberative bodies under the Russian President and Government. He is also an independent director on the Boards of several companies, including ALROSA, Russian Railways, TMK and others.
Igor Shuvalov
First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation
Born January 4, 1967, in Bilibino, Magadan Region.
1993: graduated from the Law Faculty of Moscow State University with a degree in jurisprudence.
1984–1985: laboratory assistant at the EKOS Scientific Research Institute.
1985–1987: served in the Soviet Army.
1993: attaché of the Law Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.
1993–1995: senior legal adviser at ALM Consulting.
1995: Director, ALM Law Office.
1997: Head of Department of the State Register of Federal Property, State Committee of the Russian Federation for State Property Management.
1998: Deputy Minister for State Property of the Russian Federation.
1998–2000: Chairman, Russian Federal Property Fund.
2000–2003: Chief of the Government Staff in the rank of Minister.
2003: Aide to the President of the Russian Federation.
2003–2004:Deputy Head of Administration of the President of the Russian Federation.
2004: Aide to the President of the Russian Federation.
2005: Russian Sherpa in the G8.
2008: First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation.
Married with two sons and two daughters.
David Iakobachvili
Vice President, Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP); President, Orion Heritage
David Iakobachvili is one of the founders of the largest Russian company – JSC Wimm-Bill-Dann – the manufacturer of dairy products, juices and beverages. In 2001 JSC Wimm-Bill-Dann issued shares and successfully signed on the in the NISE. For more than ten years David Iakobachvili was the Chairman of the Board of Directors of this company. In 2011, PepsiCo bought the company.
At present David Iakobachvili is the President of Orion Heritage Ltd, joint proprietor of Petrocas Energy Holding Ltd, and a Deputy Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sistema JSFC. He is a member of the steering bodies of influential Russian and international organizations. David Iakobachvili is the Vice President and a member of the BUREAU of board of Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RUIE), Head of RUIE Committee on Corporate Social Responsibility and Demographic Policy, Head of the United Committee on Ethics within the framework of RUIE, a member of the Task group of RUIE BUREAU of board on financial stability and economic growth. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (ChCI RF), President of the Russian-American Business Council, Chairman of the Directors Board of RusBrand non-commercial partnership, a member of Coordination Council on protection of intellectual property, a member of the General Council of “Business Russia” LLC, and a member of the World Economic Forum in Davos. He is the chairman of the Target group on job creation, unemployment and investments into the human capital of B20, the member of the International Business Advisory Council (IBAC was created within B20 in 2015), a member of Association the French-Russian dialogue, a member of Advisory Council on food security, a member of the Presidential international Council of University of New York (NYU), a member of Bureau of Presidium of the Russian-Jewish congress. David Iakobachvili is a member of the Public Council within the framework of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation, a member of the Public council of the Ministry of Construction, Housing and Communal services of the Russian Federation. David Iakobachvili is a member of the Musical Box Society of Great Britain.
