The St. Petersburg Economic Forum gathered the heads of the world's leading oil companies. The CEO of Royal Dutch Shell, Jeroen van der Veer, told RT that it’ll take years to change the balance towards alternative energy globally.

President Medvedev laid out his vision for Russia and its role in the world. Matthew Maly has written about  Russia's transition to democracy in a book titled “Russia As It Is”.

One of the key issues discussed at the Economic Forum in St. Petersburg this past weekend was the financial pressures facing today's world. Citigroup's vice chairman, Michael Klein, spoke to RT about Russia's economic challenges.