Russia cancels St. Petersburg economic forum amid coronavirus spread

Russia has canceled its annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) due to the coronavirus outbreak, First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said on Thursday.

The forum, which was due to be held in St. Petersburg on June 3-6, is usually chaired by President Vladimir Putin and is seen as one of the main international events on Russia's economic agenda.

Russia decided to cancel SPIEF 2020 to protect the health of Russian citizens as well as that of participants in the forum, Belousov's spokesman said.