Russia and the US are set to sign an agreement to move forward with the design of a tunnel planned to connect Russia with Alaska across the Bering Strait, according to Kirill Dmitriev, the Special Representative of the Russian President and Chief Executive of the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF).

Speaking to journalists at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Dmitriev announced that an agreement would be signed today during the forum to secure continued work on the design of the tunnel, adding that further news regarding the project would be shared tomorrow.

Dmitriev stated that the tunnel would be built in accordance with these plans, describing the initiative as one of the major infrastructure projects between Russia and the US.

Dmitriev first spoke publicly about the project last year. In an interview with CNN, he noted that political challenges would first need to be overcome for the project to be realized, but suggested that the tunnel could ultimately serve as a “symbol of unity” between Russia and the US.

In October last year, the RDIF head extended a public invitation to billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk to participate in the Bering Strait tunnel project, proposing that the structure be named the “Putin-Trump” tunnel.

In a post on the social media platform X, Dmitriev urged people to imagine a 70-mile “Putin-Trump” tunnel linking the US and Russia, as well as the Americas and Afro-Eurasia. He framed the project as a symbol of unity, calling on both nations to build the future together and connect the continents for the first time in human history.

According to calculations presented by Dmitriev, the implementation of the project could cost approximately $65 billion. However, he projected that the total cost could fall below $8 billion if technology from Elon Musk’s Boring Company is utilized.

Dmitriev also emphasized that the Russian Direct Investment Fund stands ready to participate in financing the construction phase of the project.

US President Donald Trump previously characterized the tunnel concept as interesting.

Trump stated that he had only recently heard of the proposal to build a tunnel from Russia to Alaska and had not encountered the idea before. He noted that the US was in the process of building a major highway in Alaska at the time, which would grant access to significant mineral resources.

Trump is known to look favorably upon projects that carry his name. In January, he informed Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader in the Senate, that he was prepared to release billions of dollars in federal funding for the Gateway tunnel project under the Hudson River in New York.

In exchange for releasing the funds, Trump conditioned his approval on Schumer agreeing to rename Penn Station in New York and Dulles International Airport in Washington in his honor.

The 29th St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), Russia’s premier business and investment event, opened its doors on June 3.

Held annually in the northern capital since 1997—with the sole exception of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic—the forum has been conducted under the auspices and with the personal participation of the Russian President since 2006. Below is a detailed overview of the forum’s key metrics in recent years and the largest landmark agreements signed on its sidelines.

More than 20,000 participants from over 130 countries and territories are expected to attend SPIEF-2026. To mark the 100th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations, Saudi Arabia will serve as the guest country at this year’s forum.

This guest status was granted to Bahrain last year, and to Oman in 2024. The Saudi Kingdom’s delegation will be led by Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman.

According to data from the Roscongress Foundation, the forum’s organizer, the event in 2025 set an all-time record, drawing 24,200 participants from 144 countries.

Alongside the growth in overall attendance, the number of Russian and foreign corporate executives visiting the forum has steadily risen in recent years. Last year, the number of company representatives surpassed 8,700, exceeding the 8,300 recorded the previous year and the 1,700 registered in 2022.

SPIEF is increasingly functioning as an active platform for establishing direct business connections. According to a joint survey conducted by Roscongress and the Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM), in 2022 only 29% of participants stated that their primary objective at the forum was to establish relations with key partners. By 2025, this figure rose to 44%.

Furthermore, the share of participants who reported having already successfully established such connections at the time of the survey grew from 12% in 2022 to 27% in 2025.

Excluding commercial secrets and agreements where transaction values were not disclosed, deals with a cumulative value exceeding 47.5 trillion rubles have been signed within the framework of SPIEF since 2007.

The year 2013 remains a record period in the forum’s history for the total volume of transactions, with 102 agreements signed for an aggregate value of 9.6 trillion rubles. The largest transaction of that year, and indeed in the history of SPIEF, was a $270 billion long-term crude supply agreement signed between Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).

In 2025, participants signed 1,084 agreements worth a combined 6.48 trillion rubles. This followed the 2024 forum, which saw the signing of 1,073 agreements valued at 6.49 trillion rubles.

The largest project secured during SPIEF-2021 was an agreement to construct an integrated gas processing and petrochemical complex in Ust-Luga, valued at 868 billion rubles. The deal was signed by the Governor of the Leningrad Region, Aleksandr Drozdenko, and the Director General of Rusgazdobycha JSC, Konstantin Makhov.

The construction of the complex is being carried out by Gazprom and Rusgazdobycha, through their joint operating company Ruskhimalliance. The ethane-rich gas processing facility will process 45 billion cubic meters of gas annually, with liquefied natural gas (LNG) output reaching 13.1 million tonnes. Feedstock for the project will be sourced from the Nadym-Pur-Tazovsky region. The first phase of the gas processing complex is scheduled for commissioning in 2026, while the first phase of the LNG plant is planned to go online in 2027.

At the same 2021 forum, Russkaya Platina, VEB, and VTB signed a memorandum of intent for the development of the Chernogorskoye mineral deposit in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, representing a total investment of 570 billion rubles.

The initial construction cost of the first phase of the mining and processing plant, designed to process 7 million tonnes of copper-nickel ore annually, was projected at 190 billion rubles at the time, but later rose to 240 billion rubles. Due to the impact of international sanctions, the commissioning date of the plant has been postponed to the second half of 2026.

In 2022, several large-scale transactions were executed. The Russian firm New Land Grain Corridor and the Chinese state enterprise China Chengtong International Investment signed a contract to supply Siberian grain to China and develop a network of grain elevators across the Urals, Siberia, and the Far East. The total value of the agreement was set at approximately 1 trillion rubles, with shipments commencing at the end of May 2023.

During the same 2022 St. Petersburg forum, Sber and DOM.RF signed a memorandum of understanding to issue up to 1 trillion rubles in mortgage-backed securities over the 2022–2025 period, marking a record level of securitization in the Russian financial market. This target was achieved in December 2025.

Another major transaction was a five-year credit facility of up to 630 billion rubles signed between Russian Railways (RZD) and VTB. This agreement enabled the partial substitution of European financing sources and allowed the continued modernization of transportation infrastructure.

The largest transaction of SPIEF-2023 was an agreement between Russian Aluminium Management JSC (a subsidiary of Rusal) and the government of the Leningrad Region to construct a two-phase alumina refinery in the region. The project encompasses four technological alumina production lines, a deep-water port and associated port infrastructure, a red mud storage area, energy infrastructure, and auxiliary facilities.

The planned investment in the project was announced at 400 billion rubles, with the first phase targeted for commissioning in 2028. The construction of the facility is intended to help meet the domestic aluminum industry’s demand for raw materials from domestic sources.

Additionally, the Leningrad Region signed a cooperation agreement valued at 323.2 billion rubles with the Samolet Group. Under the terms of the 11-year contract, 2.26 million square meters of housing are scheduled for construction in the region. The developer is also committed to building 13 kindergartens and eight schools by 2034.

During the 2024 forum, VEB.RF and RusHydro signed an agreement to cooperate on the modernization of thermal power plants in the Russian Far East.

A total of six projects will be financed: the expansion of the Partizanskaya state district power station (GRES), the construction of the second phase of the Neryungrinskaya GRES, the reconstruction of the Vladivostokskaya heat and power plant (TETs-2), and the construction of the Artemovskaya TETs-2, Khabarovskaya TETs-4, and the second phase of the Yakutskaya GRES-2. The cumulative electrical capacity of the new or modernized power facilities will reach 2,100 MW, with a total investment volume of 650 billion rubles.

Within the framework of SPIEF-2024, the government of the Tomsk Region also signed a major 10-year contract worth 500 billion rubles. Under the agreement, Sibagro JSC will construct a new district on the left bank of the Tom River, which will feature residential, commercial, educational, sporting, and cultural facilities.

The largest agreement of 2025 was a memorandum of cooperation on public-private partnership (PPP) projects signed between VEB.RF and the Natsproektstroy Group. Under this framework, investments of approximately 1 trillion rubles are projected through 2030.

The allocated capital will be directed toward the construction of major bridge crossings, urban bypass roads, the development of trunk infrastructure, and the expansion of sea and river ports. In total, VEB.RF signed 12 agreements worth 1.6 trillion rubles during SPIEF-2025.

Other significant transactions during the 2025 forum included a credit line agreement with a limit of up to 4000 billion rubles established between RZD and Alfa-Bank to finance the development of railway infrastructure.

During the same period, the St. Petersburg administration and the United Shipbuilding Corporation reached an agreement to modernize the Severnaya Verf shipyard in St. Petersburg, drawing 300 billion rubles in investment through 2030.

Drone strikes targeted Russia’s Leningrad region overnight, sparking a fire at a strategically vital oil terminal in St. Petersburg on the opening day of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. The attacks, which struck multiple regions across Russia, prompted widespread airspace restrictions and targeted military-industrial facilities.

Alexander Drozdenko, the governor of the Leningrad region, announced that Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) carried out an attack on the region during the night of June 3.

According to information provided by the governor, a total of 50 drones were shot down during the aerial assault, which began around 02:00 and continued until 07:00. Governor Drozdenko did not share detailed information regarding any damage or casualties resulting from the attack.

Local media outlet Bumaga reported that the sounds of explosions were heard in the Admiralteysky, Vasileostrovsky, Primorsky, and Krasnoselsky districts of St. Petersburg.

In the Kirovsky district, the attack resulted in a fire at the Petersburg Oil Terminal, one of Russia’s largest oil transshipment facilities on the Baltic Sea.

With an annual transit capacity of 12.5 million metric tons of fuel and housing 21 reservoirs used for storing petroleum products, this enterprise holds strategic importance for ensuring Russia’s security.

The drone attack on the oil terminal occurred on the opening day of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), scheduled to take place from June 3 to 6, where Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to deliver a speech.

The Expoforum exhibition center, where the forum is being held, is reportedly located approximately 17 kilometers from the targeted oil terminal. Due to drone activity and the threat of aerial attacks, more than 29 flights experienced delays at Pulkovo Airport.

On the same night, the city of Michurinsk in the Tambov region, located in the interior of Russia, was also targeted by aerial attacks. Region Governor Yevgeny Pervyshov stated in a declaration on the matter: “As a result of the crash of UAVs belonging to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, an apartment building, a library, and an art school were damaged, with their windows shattered, and the outbuildings of an industrial enterprise were also damaged. There are no casualties or injuries.”

According to an investigation by the Astra news portal, the primary target of the drones in the area was the Progress factory, which manufactures control systems for aviation and missile technologies.

The military-industrial facility in question had previously been subjected to drone attacks in February of this year, as well as in June 2025 and December 2024.

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced in a statement that a total of 354 drones were shot down over Russian territory throughout the night.

It was reported that air defense systems intercepted or shot down drones across a total of 16 administrative regions, including the Belgorod, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kaluga, Kursk, Leningrad, Novgorod, Oryol, Rostov, Tula, and Moscow regions.

Due to the threat of aerial attacks, the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsiya) imposed temporary restrictions on the operations of Moscow’s Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports, as well as airports in the cities of Kaluga, Saratov, Nizhny Novgorod, Yaroslavl, and Pskov, starting from the evening of June 2.