President Vladimir Putin will visit Franz Josef Land ahead of The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue forum to be held in Arkhangelsk on March 29-30, 2017, Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov told RIA Novosti.

"The president is planning to visit Franz Josef Land in the run-up to the Arctic forum. He will talk to environmental experts and look at the results of the clean-up," Peskov said.

Russia has been working hard for several years to eliminate the accumulated damage to the Arctic region. Heaps of empty barrels and other trash remained after economic activities in the Arctic ended. In recent years, special programs were adopted to clean Franz Josef Land, which are meant to be carried out by 2025.