Valdai Club shifts annual meeting to Moscow region amid Ukrainian strike concerns

The Valdai International Discussion Club, founded in 2004 by experts including Sergei Karaganov, announced that its 23rd annual meeting will be held in the Moscow region from September 28 to October 1, after initially planning to host it in Sochi. Organizers told attendees in late August that the Federal Protective Service required the venue change due to concerns over possible Ukrainian strikes. The conference theme focuses on future responsibility and the limits of possibility.

President Vladimir Putin, who traditionally attends once a year, has traveled to Sochi only twice in the last two years, with his most recent visit in October 2025 for the Valdai gathering. Ukrainian forces have repeatedly struck targets along Russia's Black Sea coast, including an oil refinery in Sochi, and on September 9 a sea-drone attack on the Sochi waterfront injured about 30 people.