Russia’s St Petersburg Economic Forum - often referred to in shorthand as the country’s version of Davos - begins this week and has drawn an unconventional group of U.S. visitors. Many of those Americans attending have signaled sympathy for Russia’s public positions on social and cultural issues, or have become subjects of controversy in their home countries.
The following U.S. citizens are listed as participants in the forum programme:
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Candace Owens - A right-wing American social media influencer and podcaster, Owens has been a vocal critic of Israel, U.S. financial support for Israel, and feminism, among other targets. The forum programme shows she will take part in a session on "balancing parenthood in a large family with a successful career."
Owens, 37, faces a high-profile U.S. defamation lawsuit from French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte, who have sued over Owens' false public claim that Brigitte was born male. Ahead of travelling to St Petersburg, Owens said, "I have been wanting to go to St Petersburg for a very, very long time just as a Christian in general just to see some of those cathedrals and churches."
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Steven Seagal - The former Hollywood action star and martial arts practitioner has long expressed admiration for President Vladimir Putin and was granted a Russian passport in 2016. Seagal serves as a special representative of Russia’s Foreign Ministry for humanitarian ties with the United States and Japan and is listed as taking part in a panel on culture at the forum.
Seagal has publicly supported Moscow’s 2014 annexation of Crimea, calling it "very reasonable," joined a pro-Kremlin party in 2021 and has voiced support for Russia’s war in Ukraine.
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Rodney Mims Cook Jr. - As chairman of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, Cook has overseen the controversial extension of the White House ballroom under U.S. President Donald Trump and is listed as leading an official U.S. delegation to the St Petersburg event. According to the Kremlin, he is the first U.S. official to attend the forum since 2017/18 and the first to go since Russia deployed tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022.
Cook is scheduled to speak in a session focused on U.S.-Russian cultural dialogue. Speaking to Russia’s TASS state news agency before the forum, he said he was representing the United States "as a minister of culture and as a Christian not as a politician." He also noted past efforts restoring churches in Russia and on Tuesday presented a religious icon to a male monastery in St Petersburg.
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Andrew and Tristan Tate - The brothers posted footage showing a musical welcome on arrival at a Moscow airport on the eve of the forum, though they have not formally confirmed whether they will attend sessions. Both are former kickboxers who hold dual U.S. and British citizenship.
The Tate brothers have been under criminal investigation in Romania since December 2022 on charges that include human trafficking, but the investigations have not proceeded to trial. They also face charges in Britain, including rape, actual bodily harm and human trafficking. Both have denied wrongdoing.
Andrew Tate, who describes himself in public as a misogynist, has cultivated millions of online followers by advocating an ultra-masculine lifestyle that critics say denigrates women.
The forum’s programme and the list of U.S. participants highlight a mix of cultural engagement, political signaling and contentious personal histories. Attendance by an official linked to the U.S. government, alongside polarizing public figures and individuals facing unresolved legal inquiries, underlines the eclectic nature of the American presence in St Petersburg.
Organisers list several sessions featuring U.S. participants, covering topics from cultural exchange to family and career. The presence of the Americans named above is notable both for the diversity of their backgrounds - spanning government-appointed officials, entertainment figures and social media influencers - and for the controversies that accompany some of them.
As the forum proceeds, those planning coverage and observers will be watching how these varied U.S. attendees are received and whether their participation shapes any of the event’s cultural or diplomatic discussions.