On Arctic Day, a regular meeting of the Commission of the State Council of the Russian Federation on the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic was held in Moscow under the leadership of Alexey Dyumin, Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, Secretary of the State Council of the Russian Federation, and Alexey Chekunkov, Governor of the Murmansk Region, Andrey Chibis, Chairman of the Commission, Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic.
Opening the meeting, Alexey Dyumin stressed that for centuries the Arctic has been the scene of outstanding achievements of our people, a symbol of their victories.
"Today, this region is gaining new importance, becoming a key element in ensuring Russia's future. To maintain Russia's leadership in the Arctic and the dynamic development of the Arctic economy, consolidation of all available instruments, including financial and managerial ones, is required. It is necessary to conduct a detailed analysis of the situation in the Arctic zone, to understand whether the available measures are sufficient to support its development. And on this basis, we need to determine what adjustments need to be made to the Arctic Development Strategy, taking into account modern challenges, both external, domestic, and economic. The main driving force behind the economic growth and development of the Arctic is the people who have linked their fate with the North. And the task of the state is to provide Northerners with a decent quality of life. In this regard, the main areas of our work remain the creation of comfortable housing conditions, the development of modern social and engineering infrastructure," the Presidential aide emphasized.
As Governor Andrey Chibis noted, it is symbolic that the meeting is being held on February 28– the Day of the Arctic. The head of the region thanked Alexey Dyumin and colleagues for supporting the initiative to create the Commission, and Alexey Chekunkov, Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev for fruitful and close cooperation.
"This is a unique territorial Commission that brings together work on a strategically important macro-region of our country, which is becoming even more important for the present and future development of Russia. In recent years, we have seen an increasing interest of foreign countries in the Arctic territories. Rare earth metals, hydrocarbons, and the rich resources available in the Arctic are the basis for the future of the economy and an opportunity for development and the life of new generations. I am grateful to all the members of the Commission and the Expert council of the Commission. We have done a lot of work. The next important step in realizing the enormous resource potential of the Arctic and the logistical capabilities of the Northern Sea Route should be the development and launch of a comprehensive project for the development of the Arctic and the Northern Sea Route, which can receive national status. This approach was also supported by the Maritime Board of the Russian Federation, chaired by Nikolai Platonovich Patrushev," the governor said.
Andrey Chibis stressed that it is necessary to consolidate all efforts to ensure Russia's continued leadership in the Arctic and the dynamic development of the Arctic economy.
"It is this issue and specific applied solutions and initiatives of the Commission that we will consider at today's meeting. The results of today's Commission will allow us to find effective solutions that will bring concrete, tangible results for people and for the entire Arctic region and will be able to be presented at the Arctic – Territory of Dialogue International Arctic Forum, which will be held in Murmansk for the first time in exactly one month and included in the list of instructions following the Forum," the governor noted.
The head of the region also proposed to hold a meeting with the Arctic governors – chairmen of the commissions of the State Council within the framework of the International Arctic Forum "The Arctic – the territory of dialogue".
Alexey Chekunkov, the head of the Ministry of Regional Development, also noted that close attention is being paid to the Arctic today: the natural resources and logistical capabilities of the Arctic make it a territory with fierce economic and geopolitical competition.
"In accordance with the instructions of the President and the adopted strategic documents on the development of the Arctic regions, the Russian Government is implementing socio-economic programs aimed at attracting investments into the region's economy, creating new enterprises, modernizing cities, and most importantly, improving the quality of life of people in the Arctic. The created territories of advanced development and the special economic regime of the Arctic zone of Russia play a huge role in increasing the investment attractiveness of the region. Thanks to them, almost 1,000 new projects are already being implemented with a total investment of more than 2 trillion rubles. And these are only investments of residents. In total, the volume of investment projects implemented in the Arctic exceeds 30 trillion rubles. Every 6th ruble of Russia's GDP is created in the Arctic today," Alexey Chekunkov said.
The meeting was attended by representatives of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation, federal ministries and departments, the State Duma, and the State Development Corporation VEB.Russian Federation", PJSC PhosAgro, JSC USC, PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel, heads of the Arctic regions.
/ Ministry of Information Policy of the Murmansk Region /