President Vladimir Putin says Russia remains a key partner in world trade even under increasing Western sanctions.
Despite all the obstacles and what he called "illegitimate sanctions" imposed by the West, the country is developing its logistics and the geography of its international cooperation, Putin said on Friday at the 27th St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF).
The country is among the leading economic nations - ahead of Germany, he said, referring to data that takes purchasing power into account.
The West has imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia as punishment for Putin's war against Ukraine, which has been going on for more than two years.
Around three quarters of foreign trade is now conducted with countries that are friendly to Russia, Putin said.
Since the West imposed trade bans in many areas, Russia has orientated itself economically towards China in particular, but also towards India, Africa and Latin America.
In a speech to hundreds of guests, Putin also called for the expansion of cooperation in technology transfer and announced interesting growth prospects for investors from abroad.
The Russian president also said that the development of a payment system independent of the United States would continue.
In addition, Russia wants to roughly quadruple shipping traffic on the North-East Passage via the Arctic Ocean from the 36 million tons moved last year to as much as 150 million tons, Putin said.
"In the future, transport could increase to 150 million tons," Putin said. The 36 million tons that moved last year consisted of freight transported on the northern sea route between Europe and Asia.
Russia is expanding the sea route along its northern coast and establishing overland transport routes to its Arctic harbours, Putin said.
The Arctic route between Europe and Asia is significantly shorter than the routes through the Indian Ocean, but it is blocked by ice for a large part of the year. Climate change is extending the navigable time.
One of the uses Russia puts the route to is the transport of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by ship from the port of Sabetta on the Yamal Peninsula in Siberia to customers in Asia.
Moscow is also planning to build new nuclear icebreakers to keep the route open for longer and increase its presence in the Arctic Ocean. Many Russian harbours along the northern coast have no connection to the road or rail network.
Critics fear that an increase in shipping traffic could damage the sensitive Arctic environment.
Despite the limited economic contacts, many entrepreneurs from Western countries were attending the forum, including from the US and the EU.
Western experts point to the comparatively robust state of Russia's economy, due largely to the huge ramp-up of the war economy.
Right at the start of the economic forum, which has been running since Wednesday and ends this Saturday, Russian politicians and entrepreneurs have emphasized that the country was preparing for a long military conflict.
Russia's war-footing could now characterize the economy of the nuclear power for years to come, they said at the forum events.
