RT reported that speaking at the Russia-US talks on February 18 in Saudi Arabia, Dmitriev emphasized: "We believe they will return. Why give up the opportunities that Russia brings, especially the right to access huge natural resources?"
According to the RDIF Director, Russia and the US can cooperate in many projects in the Arctic, despite the tensions in the relationship.
Notably, Mr. Dmitriev said, the sanctions war has had a counterproductive effect, causing US companies to suffer losses of more than $300 billion due to withdrawing from the Russian market. This figure is almost equal to the total assets of the Russian Central Bank frozen by the West.
After the Ukraine conflict escalated, the West imposed unprecedented sanctions aimed at destabilizing Russia's economy and forcing Moscow to end its military activities.
The back-and-forth sanctions have caused many Western companies to divest from their Russian businesses, losing billions of dollars in investment and profits. According to an estimate by the Yale University of Management, more than 1,000 foreign companies have voluntarily cut operations in Russia to some extent since February 2022.
"US businesses have lost more than $300 billion by leaving the Russian market," Dmitriev told CNN ahead of the first direct talks between Russia and the US on February 18.
The official noted that with such a large loss, lifting the sanctions would be in the interests of the United States and Russia.
Mr. Dmitriev affirmed that restoring dialogue is necessary, not only for the benefit of Russia but also for the US economy itself. "The whole world is watching to see if the US and Russia can improve relations. Better relations will help us solve many global problems" - he said.
The talks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, are the result of a phone call on February 12 between President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin.
Although both leaders did not attend directly, on the Russian side were Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Mr. Dmitriev and Mr. Yury Ushakov, President Putin's top foreign policy assistant.
The US delegation included Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Michael Waltz and Special Envoy to the Middle East Stephen Witkoff.
An important detail is that Ukraine and the EU were not present at the meeting.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the main goal of the talks was to "comprehensively restore Russia-US relations" and pave the way for a summit between President Putin and President Trump in the future.
