St. Peterburg hosted a meeting of the Russian Maritime Board, co-chaired by Presidential Aide and Maritime Board Chair Nikolai Patrushev and Chair of the Maritime Board’s Science-Expert Council – President of the Kurchatov Institute Mikhail Kovalchuk, according to the press service of the Maritime Board. 

According to Nikolai Patrushev, work is underway to draft new fundamental principles of Russia’s state Arctic policy and a strategy for the socio-economic development of the Arctic zone and promoting national security. The documents are expected to chart the main development goals of the Arctic zone in the context of a new geopolitical and geoeconomics situation.

Specific objectives will be accomplished using a special project for the development of the Arctic zone of Russia and the Trans-Arctic transport corridor. The project is to sum up measures for ensuring the region’s environmental well-being, and it will facilitate their interdependent implementation. The project will prioritize the elimination of accumulated industrial waste, the reclamation of northern territories and environmental safety measures during the implementation of infrastructure and industrial projects.

Chair of the Maritime Board’s Science-Expert Council – President of the Kurchatov Institute Mikhail Kovalchuk noted that it was necessary to heed the significance of industrial activity and the need for nature conservation, while developing the northern territories. According to the scientist, a strategy for developing nature-type technologies can become a foundation for delicate using northern territories; it is necessary to establishing an entirely new energy sector that would feature technologies used in submarines.