The World Russian Forum is an annual event, which takes place in Washington, D.C. for more than twenty five years, beginning in 1981. At present, its program embraces a large scope of issues on the cooperation of Russia and the USA in the spheres of politics, economics, science, education, culture and others.

The founders of the Forum are public organizations: American University in Moscow and Russian House. Traditionally, the Forum’s conferences are held in the USA Congress. Traced back to 1981-1988, Forum’s subjects focused generally on geopolitical and ideological struggle with the communism. After 1988, organizational committee of the Forum passed on from confrontations with Moscow to advancement of the idea of cooperation between Russia and the USA. In 1988, the situation in Soviet Union changed significantly, glasnost – “freedom of speech” - became a reality of public life, and the first sprouts of the market economy appeared. In spring of 1989, on Mikhail Gorbatchev’s initiative, for the first and only time the Forum was held in Moscow, without any limitations on membership of participants.

As a result, many of the well-known occidental politicians, public figures and intellectuals, who, owing to their political status, never could obtain a Soviet Union visa, got an opportunity to come to Moscow. They gave lectures, interviews to the press and on TV, and, most importantly, held open discussions with Soviet politicians, scientists and students without restrictions or censure on the part of the authorities.

The last decade of the XXth century is marked by sharply rising importance of the Forum, as a meeting platform for major American and Russian business representatives, a ground where important connections are made and investment possibilities are explored. For the strategic planning of promotion of their interests on the economical stage of Russia and CIS, analytical structures of transnational corporations are guided, in a large extent, by the information obtained on the Forum.

During all these years, this international meeting enjoys support of many congressmen in the USA. Apart from providing an auditorium in the Senate, dozens of congressmen and senators participated in meetings of the Forum. Among the American participants, there is also a large number of high-ranking officials of many governmental offices, representatives of large business corporations and leading universities, experts of well-known “brain centers”.

Among the Russian participants there are members of the Federation Counsel and the State Duma deputies, as well as high-ranked federal and Moscow officials, academicians, rectors of main Russian universities and colleges, and chiefs of mega-corporations.

We would like to acknowledge the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C. and the General Consulate of the Russian Federation in New York for their generous support.