At a meeting of the Expert Council of the State Council of the Russian Federation Commission on the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic, proposals were discussed to update the strategy for the development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and ensuring national security for the period up to 2035 and the Fundamentals of Russia's state policy in the Arctic.
The meeting was attended by professors, scientific heads of institutes, representatives of the State Duma, the Federation Council and the business community - all those who are interested in the development of the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic.
"Updating the strategic documents for the development of the Arctic, including its transport and logistics system, is extremely important, both in terms of responding to geopolitical challenges and in order to improve the quality of life of the population living there. This issue was one of the first to be discussed at the Commission's site. And one of the key decisions that has been announced and formulated in the list of presidential instructions is the need to approve a new strategy and doctrine for the Russian Federation's actions in the Arctic. This is also the elaboration of a mechanism for implementing a new strategy. The same comprehensive project for the development of the Russian Arctic, which we also talked about. Therefore, we have actually started this work," said Andrey Chibis, Chairman of the Commission and Governor of the Murmansk Region.
The issue of the need to amend key strategic documents for the development of the Russian Arctic was first discussed back in February 2024: at that time, as part of the work of the Working Group on Ensuring Transport, Logistics and Socio-Economic Development of the Arctic under the Commission of the State Council of the Russian Federation on Transport.
In March 2025, Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, following a working visit to Murmansk, during which he participated in the plenary session of the VI International Arctic Forum "The Arctic — the Territory of Dialogue", instructed to submit proposals on updating the strategy for the development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation and the Foundations of state policy, taking into account the need to extend their implementation until 2050. of the year. Proposals must be submitted by July 1, 2025.
The Chairman of the Commission thanked colleagues from the Maritime Board, the Government of the Russian Federation, representatives of business, scientific and expert community who participated in the development and discussion of strategic documents. He especially noted the role of the Ministry of the Far East Development of Russia and the Vostokgosplan Foundation.
In October 2024, Mikhail Mishustin, Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, gave instructions to adjust the documents following the results of the strategic session on the development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.
The updating of the documents is dictated by a change in national priorities, an increase in geopolitical tensions in the Arctic, and the linking of the development of Arctic resources and spaces with the general trend in the development of the national economy and international relations. Mikhail Kuznetsov, director of the Vostokgosplan FANU, also spoke about this during his report.
"The main approaches are outlined. This should be a document that includes common initiatives and proposals from all interested organizations, corporations, and the public. If we talk about the source code, then of course a lot has changed since the adoption of the previous version of the strategy. The territory of the Russian Arctic itself has expanded, and geopolitical tensions have grown significantly, as experts have noted in their proposals. This means that a number of key investment projects have been adjusted," Mikhail Kuznetsov said.
During the speech, the participants of the meeting presented their expert opinions, which discussed the priority areas of socio-economic development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation, including environmental protection and measures to support indigenous peoples. An important addition to the updated strategy is the introduction of a new spatial variable – the mainstay settlements of the Russian Arctic, as well as taking into account their development plans.
The head of the region expressed gratitude to the participants of the meeting for their constructive recommendations, which will support the revision of the strategy and will be submitted for discussion by the State Council Commission. He also particularly thanked the Ministry of the Far East Development of Russia and the Vostokgosplan Foundation, which, on behalf of Mikhail Mishustin, Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, carried out extensive and painstaking work to update the most important document for the Arctic.
/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /