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US companies in sectors including energy, aviation and high technology are monitoring the geopolitical situation and waiting for an opportunity to return to the Russian market, Robert Agee, head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia (AmCham Russia), told Izvestia on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF). 

"Companies, especially in energy, aviation and high tech, are genuinely following the situation, assessing the market, studying the laws and regulations. They are planning their return," he said. 

Agee added that American oil companies and industrial equipment manufacturers — including those involved in the sale of industrial lubricants — are also considering a return. 

However, any return of US companies would require a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, he explained. Without one, the US authorities would not give the green light to lifting sanctions or to a large-scale re-entry into the Russian market, he said. 

Speaking at the SPIEF plenary session, Russian President Vladimir Putin said some foreign investors were showing interest in returning to Russia, but added that their return would depend on how they had conducted themselves in the past. "We will be watching carefully — if those partners who left our market two or three years ago did not make too much of a mess or behave badly, we will welcome their return," he said. Putin stressed that Russia would in any case act in the interests of domestic business.