Federal territories as the innovation of the policy of spatial development in the Russian Federation

The adoption of Federal Law No.172 on strategic planning in the Russian Federation, as well as of such a document as the strategy for spatial development in the Russian Federation until 2025, not only provided additional legitimacy to spatial strategizing as a necessary component of the strategic planning system in the country, but also supplemented this planning with a system of new institutions. Although not all of these institutions are currently ensured with a clear program of practical implementation (for example, so-called “geostrategic territories"), all of them create a real perspective for the formation of a flexible, targeted state policy for regional development. An important innovation in this direction, outlined in the system of amendments and additions to the Constitution of the Russian Federation in 2020, is the legalization and even the beginning of the practical implementation of the institution of federal territories. The paper examines the essence of the institution of federal territories, the purpose and specifics of their introduction into the practice of spatial regulation in the Russian economy. The emphasis is placed on the need to combine this innovation with the fundamental foundations of the Russian federal statehood, with the established system of functioning of state administration and self-government in the country.