Putin just welcomed the world at his forum. Women need not apply.

ST. PETERSBURG — Sharing the floor with Russian President Vladimir Putin can test one’s patience. Especially if you’re a woman. International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde was last to speak at the plenary session of Russia’s glitzy economic forum, the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, on Friday afternoon, bearing a responsibility she compared to being married to Liz Taylor. “At this wonderful moment, I am the fifth, and incidentally, the only woman,” Lagarde told the large audience of mostly men. Her signature silver locks flicked across her brow, Lagarde said she felt like the actor Richard Burton, who, as Taylor’s fifth husband, “knew what was expected, but wasn’t sure how to be original.” This invited guffaws from Russia’s political and business elite — and a sideways smirk from Putin. French President Emmanuel Macron, squirming in his chair, seemed hardly capable of suppressing his laughter. After hours of onstage camaraderie by Putin, Macron, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan, the managing director of the IMF finally got her turn.