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MOSCOW, June 16 (Reuters) - Exxon Mobil's ChiefExecutive Rex Tillerson affirmed his commitment to doingbusiness with Russia on Monday with a speech at a high-profileindustry conference in Moscow.
Western governments have urged global firms to avoid suchappearances as they impose sanctions on Russian business leadersover Russia's annexation of Crimea and its actions in easternUkraine, where pro-Russian armed rebels are seeking secession.
In May, several Western energy bosses attended the StPetersburg International Economic Forum, saving it from failureas top executives from banks and other firms stayed away.
"In the years ahead, we look forward to tapping advantages... in the Far East of Russia..., unlocking new supplies of oiland natural gas in the Kara Sea and beyond," Tillerson told theWorld Petroleum Congress in Moscow.
BP CEO Bob Dudley, who attended the St Petersburgforum, told reporters on the sidelines of the Moscow congressthat BP "continues to work and do business as usual" in Russia.
While BP holds a 19.75 percent stake in Russianstate-controlled oil giant Rosneft, Exxon works withRosneft mostly through joint ventures, including one to explorethe Arctic Kara Sea.
Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin, who has been targeted personallywith sanctions, said this month that the start of thatexploration could be brought forward.
Exxon has a stake in the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project, andhas agreed to help Russia develop unconventional oil resourcessuch as shale oil as output from its conventional fields inSiberia declines.
The CEOs of Norway's Statoil, France's Total and China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) were amongthose expected to attend the Moscow conference. (Reporting by Katya Golubkova; Writing by Polina Devitt;Editing by Kevin Liffey and Dale Hudson)