John Bonar
Deputy Chairman & Representative Russian Far East
Deputy Chairman. Founder and CEO of the Vostok Group of companies. Educated at Welbeck College and trained in the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst he created a first career as a foreign correspondent in the Middle East from Libya to the Gulf. He then developed a marketing Communications consultancy in the Middle East before working in Cyprus and Greece as an adviser to a Middle East tycoon.
Since 1995 he has been involved with Russia. Formerly the UK Representative on the Board of the Association of European Business in Moscow.
Speaks Russian and Arabic. Member of Russo-British Chamber of Commerce, Advance Member of the Institute of Directors.
Ben Wells
Deputy Chairman (Legal Liaison)
A leading London based Lawyer, Ben is not only a note corporate lawyer in the city but the WRF’s ‘In-House’ Counsel. A passionate Russian speaker Ben is often found in Moscow and the Former Soviet Union – Ben is also the Head and Founder of RUSFOR – the UK’s Russian speaking lawyers network.
Committee Members with Portfolio
Dr Kevin Cordes
Commercial Director
Dr Kevin Cordes is a leading UK environmental, infrastructure and construction sector specialist with many years in the field. A passionate advocate of international free trade, Kevin leads the efforts on promoting ties with UK industry and other key stakeholders.
Having worked internationally in the Middle East, Kevin is also a Director of Thames Global Consultants – a bespoke consultancy with a practical ‘in the field’ support ethos. Kevin is also a specialist antique book collector and a passionate Russophile.
Olga Balakleets
Cultural & Arts Director
A prominent and highly decorated cultural leader, Olga is the founder and organiser of the famed London Maslenitsa Festival. Well established the Maslenitsa Festival celebrates the warmth and strength of the UK-Russian cultural community. Olga is a regular on the culture circuit and has received a number of state and civic awards celebrating her work in building cultural ties between our two countries.
Nick Sutton
North of England Representative
A native to Yorkshire, Nick is a senior leader in the NHS and is keen to participate in promoting improved relationships, and discussions between the UK and Russia, with a particular interest in healthcare.
Nick attended Chatham’s School of Music, and is proficient in playing the piano and pipe organ. Nick has a particular passion in the masters who created Russian classical music such as Rachmaninoff, Mussorgsky, Tchaikovsky and Scriabin to name a few.
Nick lives with his family in West Yorkshire, and is looking forward to promoting the WRF’s goals and aims to stakeholders across the north of England.
Ernest Reid
WRF ‘Ambassador at Large’
Ernest is a native of St Petersburg and currently works as a freelance translator – spending his time between the UK, Balkans and Russia, Ernest supports the work of the WRF by promoting our work wherever he travels!
Irina Martin
Member of the Board and WRF ‘Ambassador at Large’
Irina is an experienced fund manager and finance specialist – active on the committee she helps support WRF’s outreach to global industry.
Simone Vittorio Stasi
Member of the Board – City & Financial Services Liasion Director
Spending his time between Italy, Switzerland, Russia and the UK – Simone is a specialised corporate finance advisor. Working with the London City and financial community, Simone is actively promoting ties between European, UK and Russian financial communities.
Fred Masri
Member of the WRF Board and Representative in Kazan – RF
Based in Kazan, RF – Fred is a long standing member and supporter of the WRF. A passionate Russophile Fred is currently residing in Kazan, promoting ties between the UK and Kazan region.
John Bonar
Deputy Chairman & Representative Russian Far East
Deputy Chairman. Founder and CEO of the Vostok Group of companies. Educated at Welbeck College and trained in the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst he created a first career as a foreign correspondent in the Middle East from Libya to the Gulf. He then developed a marketing Communications consultancy in the Middle East before working in Cyprus and Greece as an adviser to a Middle East tycoon.
Since 1995 he has been involved with Russia. Formerly the UK Representative on the Board of the Association of European Business in Moscow.
Speaks Russian and Arabic. Member of Russo-British Chamber of Commerce, Advance Member of the Institute of Directors.
Ben Wells
Deputy Chairman (Legal Liaison)
A leading London based Lawyer, Ben is not only a note corporate lawyer in the city but the WRF’s ‘In-House’ Counsel. A passionate Russian speaker Ben is often found in Moscow and the Former Soviet Union – Ben is also the Head and Founder of RUSFOR – the UK’s Russian speaking lawyers network.
Committee Members with Portfolio
Dr Kevin Cordes
Commercial Director
Dr Kevin Cordes is a leading UK environmental, infrastructure and construction sector specialist with many years in the field. A passionate advocate of international free trade, Kevin leads the efforts on promoting ties with UK industry and other key stakeholders.
Having worked internationally in the Middle East, Kevin is also a Director of Thames Global Consultants – a bespoke consultancy with a practical ‘in the field’ support ethos. Kevin is also a specialist antique book collector and a passionate Russophile.
Olga Balakleets
Cultural & Arts Director
A prominent and highly decorated cultural leader, Olga is the founder and organiser of the famed London Maslenitsa Festival. Well established the Maslenitsa Festival celebrates the warmth and strength of the UK-Russian cultural community. Olga is a regular on the culture circuit and has received a number of state and civic awards celebrating her work in building cultural ties between our two countries.
Ernest Reid
WRF ‘Ambassador at Large’
Ernest is a native of St Petersburg and currently works as a freelance translator – spending his time between the UK, Balkans and Russia, Ernest supports the work of the WRF by promoting our work wherever he travels!
Irina Martin
Member of the Board and WRF ‘Ambassador at Large’
Irina is an experienced fund manager and finance specialist – active on the committee she helps support WRF’s outreach to global industry.
Simone Vittorio Stasi
Member of the Board – City & Financial Services Liasion Director
Spending his time between Italy, Switzerland, Russia and the UK – Simone is a specialised corporate finance advisor. Working with the London City and financial community, Simone is actively promoting ties between European, UK and Russian financial communities.
Fred Masri
Member of the WRF Board and Representative in Kazan – RF
Based in Kazan, RF – Fred is a long standing member and supporter of the WRF. A passionate Russophile Fred is currently residing in Kazan, promoting ties between the UK and Kazan region.
Slava Jefremov
Deputy Chairman (Technical)
Slava Jefremov is a business strategist, marketing & communications expert with a flair for technology. He is helping WRF to grow digitally by writing columns sharing his experience and promoting dialogue between businesses operating in UK and Russia.
Mark Izatt
Deputy Chairman (Strategy)
Mark made his first visit to Moscow in 2009 and since then has become a regular visitor primarily for business. A graduate of the University of Aberdeen, Mark worked for 10 years in New York and now resides in London as a global luxury and technology brand consultant.
International & Regional Representatives
Sergei Artimenia
Representative – Minsk, Belarus
Representing the WRF in Belarus, Sergei is the WRF’s lead in Belarus and also Chair of the Belarus Forum. A successful IT company owner, Sergei is a leading light in the growing Belarussian IT & Tech sector with a keen interest in UK-CIS trade.
Mirjam Zwingli
European Representative – Berlin
Mirjam Katharina Zwingli is a Swiss expatriate living in Germany and a self-employed Consultant. She is a Ph.D. student in Media Studies with her research focussing on propaganda and enemy images in democracies. She has an MA in Intercultural Communication and a BA in Translation Science – her studies about biased coverage of Putin vs. Obama in the German quality press were published online and have been referred to since.
Subject of her ongoing doctoral thesis is the Russian image in the German press. She works on the assumption that an enemy image serves a greater goal. Powerful global interests need an enemy image to establish and maintain their status quo.
Ms. Zwingli is member of the German-Russian Forum Berlin. She was a speaker in the EU-Parliament in Brussels at the European-Russian Forum in 2017. She was invited by the State Duma of the Russian Federation to observe the presidential election in Moscow 2018. Further more she is the representative of the Westminster Russia Forum London for European relations.
Anton Samoylenko
Deputy Chair (Russia) & Moscow Representative
A leading member of the WRF, Anton is the Moscow representative for the Westminster Russia Forum. With a varied background in Russian business, politics, cultural outreach and education Anton is leading on all efforts to build and launch the WRF Moscow Branch.
Anton holds a range of senior positions in the Russian Federation including:
- Deputy Chairman of the Westminster (Russia)
- Deputy Chairman – Siberian Alliance Group
- Chairman of the Presidium – National Foundation Public Recognition & National Civil Committee
- Member of the International Police Association
- Cavalier of High Civil Award of the Golden Honorary Badge “Public Recognition”
Philip Owen
Wales Representative
A native to Southern Wales, Philip is a leading member of the WRF and is active in promoting trade between the UK, Wales and Russia / CIS – a seasoned trade veteran, Philip is a key export advisor to a number of leading businesses as well as being a regular industry speaker.
Ian Morse
Scottish Representative
Representing the WRF in Scotland, Ian is a journalist and responsible for promoting the WRF’s goals and aims to a range of Scottish stakeholders.