Plenary session "Russian Arctic: The Way to the Future" was held at the Exposition

On May 24, as part of the business program of the Regional Development Days "Space of the Future: Far Eastern and Arctic Macroregion", a plenary session "Russian Arctic: the Way to the Future" was held. Representatives of government and business, heads of regions, experts, researchers, members of public organizations discussed current issues and prospects for the development of support cities of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.

"The Arctic is a whole world. The rich history of its development goes back many centuries, and throughout this history the Russian people have always been the first in the Arctic. Today, the Russian Arctic is the kitchen of the world weather, the shortest sea route from Europe to Asia, the shortest air route from America to Eurasia, and a treasure trove of natural resources on a global scale," said Alexei Chekunkov, Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic.  

He also noted that the Arctic is first and foremost about people: creators who implement unique technological investment projects under difficult conditions. To ensure their successful implementation, by order of the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, new master plans for the development of anchor cities are being created for the settlements of the Arctic zone, which have become the anchor ones. It is planned to complete the development of strategic documentation by July 1.

"We should be a world leader in the technologies of living and working in the North. There are instructions from the President, but for us it is also a sacred mission, our public declaration to the residents of the Arctic, and to all Russians, and to the people of the world that we are a great northern power, and that it is good to live in the North," concluded Alexei Chekunkov.

Grigory Ledkov, a member of the Federation Council Committee on Federal Structure, noted the special significance of including indigenous and small-numbered peoples of the Arctic in the ongoing processes: "We are very honored that indigenous and small-numbered peoples are also included in all these processes, and we contribute very actively. Together we can do a lot of good things for the prosperity of every little corner, islet, and coast of our beautiful, great and ancient Arctic, and it is meetings and forums such as these that ensure this cooperation".  

Alexander Tsybulsky, Governor of the region, spoke about the key areas of development and the special mission of the Arkhangelsk region — the largest Arctic agglomeration.

"We do some of the best things and give it to the country, and then it serves the whole country. And this very important thing — master planning — allows us to set higher-level goals for ourselves to understand what tools we will use and what practices we will implement. In accordance with the master plans, we have chosen the following slogan for our mission: 'Preserving History, Creating the Future'", emphasized Alexander Tsybulsky.  

The development plans of the anchor cities and the territory as a whole were also presented by the Governor of the Chukotka Autonomous Area Vladislav Kuznetsov, the Head of the Republic of Karelia Artur Parfenchikov and the Governor of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Area Dmitry Artyukhov. The meeting was moderated by Alexandra Suvorova, TV presenter of the Rossiya 24 channel.