Russian oligarchs and companies aren't invited to Davos for the 2022 World Economic Forum annual meeting, marking their first absence since the fall of the USSR

The World Economic Forum's (WEF) annual meeting in Davos will be noticeably absent from this year as Putin's war on Ukraine nears its fourth month.

Not a single Russian official, executive, or company was invited to the conference. The site has been turned into an exhibition called the Russia War Crimes House.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the conference has excluded Russians from its elite attendees. Russians were the third most-represented billionaires in 2020.

The WEF has frozen all relations with Russian entities, according to a WEF spokeswoman. WEF did not reply to the request for further comment.

After two years of virtual-only events, the grand meeting of the world's political and economic elite is attempting to regain its place in a post-pandemic, war-torn world. The WEF invited President Putin to speak at the event after they responded to Russia's invasion of Crimea with a boycott.

Russian billionaire and currently blacklisted by the US, EU, and UK, is known for throwing extravagant after-parties at conferences. A performance by Spanish pop artist Enrique Iglesias was hosted by the billionaire aluminum magnate. Two years prior, models dressed as flight attendants spoon-fed guests, according to the report.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is scheduled to deliver a virtual keynote address on Monday, filling in for Russia at the World Economic Forum.

The World Economic Forum condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February and said it will support humanitarian and diplomatic efforts.

We hope that the space for bridge-building and reconciliation will emerge once more, in the longer-term.