Law on Arctic development may be adopted in Russia next year
© RIA Novosti. Evgeniy Samarin

Law on Arctic development may be adopted in Russia next year

A new federal law on the development of Russia's Arctic zone may be adopted next spring, TASS reports, citing Igor Chernyshenko from the Federation Council Committee on the Federal Structure, Regional Policies, Local Self-Governance and Affairs of the North.

Igor Chernyshenko is attending a meeting of the Standing Committee of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region in Helsinki.

"Arctic development is one of Russia's priorities. We have recently approved a new version of the socioeconomic development program for the Arctic Zone until 2025. It provides for the creation of several areas of development, with total funding in excess of 240 billion rubles. The money will be raised mainly via public-private partnerships, rather than from the budget," Chernyshenko told TASS.

He pointed out that the Russian authorities are creating a framework for the further development of the Northern Sea Route. "Under a provisional agreement, we will use Rosatomflot's icebreakers that are based in Murmansk," Chernyshenko said.

According to Chernyshenko, the new federal law will form the legal basis for Arctic development.

"We have an executive order on Arctic development that covers eight regions, a socioeconomic development program, and a state commission led by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin. The time has come to adopt a law to regulate the basic parameters of Arctic development. There is not enough time to adopt it this year, so the State Duma and the Federation Council will most likely discuss and approve it during the spring session, thereby completing this process," Igor Chernyshenko said.