The Governor of the Murmansk Region Andrey Chibis and the Mayor of Moscow Sergey Sobyanin signed an agreement on trade, economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation, as well as a program for its implementation for 2021-2025.
As Sergei Sobyanin noted, the signing of the document between Moscow and the Murmansk Region will benefit the residents of both Russian regions.
In his response, Andrey Chibis thanked the Moscow government for its assistance in countering the spread of the new coronavirus infection and confirmed his readiness to actively develop cooperation with the capital.
"Thank you for the cooperation and support that Moscow has historically provided to the Murmansk Region. Special thanks for the support of the health system during the pandemic and the renewal of public transport in the settlements of our region. The signed agreement opens up new prospects for cooperation, which will ensure an even more dynamic development of the economy of the Murmansk region and the growth of the well-being of our residents," said Governor Andrey Chibis.
The agreement and the Program of Cooperation between Moscow and the Murmansk Region develop the provisions of the previous bilateral document signed in 2013. The new documents provide for the expansion of interregional economic integration and the strengthening of bilateral ties in such areas as transport, information communications, industry, agriculture, trade and services, architecture and construction, housing and communal services, energy, energy conservation and energy efficiency, urban improvement, health, education, science, culture, tourism and sports, environmental protection, family and youth policy.
The Murmansk Region is a reliable trade and economic partner of Moscow, primarily in the field of food supplies. In 2018-2019, the enterprises delivered 38.2 thousand tons of fish products to the Russian capital. For their part, Moscow companies supply the region with food products, passenger cars, automobile gasoline, diesel fuel, household washing machines, medical devices and medicines.
Relations in the fields of education, health and culture play an important role in bilateral cooperation. Over the past three years, more than two thousand northerners have been treated in Moscow city hospitals.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Moscow donated more than 2.2 million different medical devices to medical institutions in the Arctic, including oxygen concentrators, protective suits, medical masks, flowmeters, pulse oximeters, and non-invasive ventilators.