Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin has proposed using the territorial principle for a state program of the socioeconomic development of the Arctic. According to TASS, he voiced the idea at a meeting of the presidium of the State Commission for Arctic Development.

Rogozin recalled that the Ministry of Economic Development had been instructed to prepare a new wording of the above state program by December 1, 2015.

"During its yearend meeting in December, the state commission members extended the deadline to the end of March 2016. On March 1, the Economic Development Ministry submitted a report according to which it has received proposals from all the relevant agencies, but their proposals only concern individual industry-specific objectives. They don't ensure the achievement of strategic goals and are not sufficient in terms of preparing a comprehensive document on socioeconomic development, that is, a state program," Rogozin said. "The latest proposal provides for using a new, territorial principle for the Arctic development program based on the creation of core development zones."

The deputy prime minister said that he had no objections to this proposal on the whole. "However, it is also clear that we still don't have a comprehensive, substantiated and coordinated state program," he said, adding that the issue had been put on the agenda of the April 21 government meeting. Rogozin urged all concerned parties to finish the drafting of the document and coordinate it with all relevant ministries and departments by the end of March.