St. Petersburg , Russia ( CNN ) -- Vladimir Putin was out on a mission here in his hometown to re-boot his languishing economy after political moves involving Ukraine scared off investors in the past half year . While voters were readying for an election this weekend in Ukraine , the Russian president spent 48 hours at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum to convey a message to those in attendance , his domestic constituency and investors watching our coverage from abroad . The images showed an engaged leader in constant dialogue with corporate titans and one helping to support dealmaking . Putin stood proudly behind Igor Sechin , the CEO of his energy giant Rosneft , as he finalized a recent agreement with his counterpart Marco Tronchetti Provera of Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli . The signing of seven agreements on Saturday capped off a week where Putin orchestrated a $ 400bn , 30-year agreement with China to export natural gas . To underscore that moment , he invited a Chinese vice-premier to his annual roundtable . Bringing him here reinforced the new partnership and illustrates to the world Russia is moving east to Asia to capture business . Alexey Ulyukaev , Russia Economic Development Minister and a member of `` Team Putin '' told a CNN emerging markets roundtable here at SPIEF . `` This is our message : nothing personal , nothing political , just business . '' Impact of Crimea . But politics and business have clashed over Ukraine . President Putin 's move to annex Crimea may have boosted his poll ratings at home , but it certainly has not helped his standing in global business . U.S. and EU sanctions prompted capital flight of $ 60bn in the first quarter . More worrying , cabinet ministers and business leaders told me , it 's holding back decision making . `` This problem is not the sanctions themselves which are in place at the moment , '' said Dmitry Konov , CEO of the Russian natural gas and petro-chemical group Sibur , `` but rather that most of our partners do n't know what to expect if anything . '' That uncertainty is hitting an economy already in decline . Russia was growing 4 % back in 2010 , but it has taken a staircase lower to just over 1 % last year . It is projected to barely expand this year , according to the International Monetary Fund . There is also the potential danger of global contagion by trying to isolate a near $ 2 trillion economy like Russia . `` It 's very difficult to solve the problem without engagement , `` said Mustafa Abdel-Wadood , Chairman of the Executive Committee at private equity firm Abraaj Group . `` I do n't think we 'll find solution without engagement . And I would apply it to both : commercial and political decisions , '' he added . After the final event of the forum , Sechin of Rosneft told me constant questions on sanctions do n't help matters . He has been the target of U.S. sanctions limiting his ability to travel there for business with partners such as Exxon-Mobil . `` I suggest we do n't discuss the sanctions anymore because it is counterproductive , '' he said , adding , `` The increased attention to sanctions and discussion of sanctions significantly increase their importance . '' Corporate leaders understand that Putin and his team want to turn the page on Ukraine , but there is another reality . Beyond all the efforts to convey a message of `` business as usual , '' investors who attended the forum said they want to see how the Kremlin responds to events after the Ukraine election . Read more : Russia 's Davos : Where Vladimir Putin has gone from powerhouse to pariah .
Russia has been hosting the May 22-24 Defterios . Italian President Crimea spent 48 hours at the business gathering . He gave the impression of an engaged leader aiding dealmaking , Putin says . But Defterios says the annexing of John Defterios has not helped Putin 's standing in global business .