Five problems of Russian Arctic development

In recent years, Large circumpolar fields have begun to attract great attention of not only Arctic countries, but also states, situated far from high latitudes. In conditions of global climate changes a possibility of exploitation of these fields became possible. Here great deposits of hydrocarbon crude and mining materials are open. And the Northern Sea route promise to become the international transport corridor, where length of investigation is increasing. These problems were in the center of participants’ attraction of regular meeting «Mercury club», which took place in

October, the 8th, 2014.

Speaking in this meeting, Evgeniy Primakov, academician of RAS, president of the «Mercury club», touched 5 problems. The first problem legalization of external frontier of Russian continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean according to international right. The second problem. We must state some success in rebirth of the Northern sea route. But we had to do much more than already done. It is referred to increasing construction of atomic and diesel ice-breakers, as well as to perfection of navigation systems and contacts during the whole duration of the Northern sea route. The third problem is exploitation of resources, especially of energetic surely in the Arctic part of the Russian Federation, including ex- ploitation on our continental shelf. The fourth problem is fortifying of military infrastructure in the Arctic region. Firstly, reconstruction of transpolar aerodromes and military base in the Novosibirsk islands. The fifth problem is real socio-economic development of the Russian Arctic zone. Set by the president to government challenge to provide full funding of the program starting from 2017 absolutely doesn’t mean inactivity in socio-economic development of this region during these two years, especially in organizational-administrative level.

Arthur Chilingarov, special RF Presidential Envoy in international relationship in Arctic and Antarctic, RAS corresponding member, Hero of the Soviet Union and Russia announced: «I would like to say that there are different opinions on convention (UN Law of the Sea Convention, 1982), but the common opinion is that we probably got ahead of ourselves with its ratification. Only USA didn’t ratify this convention. It turns out that in their politics they think of sectoral dividing. That’s why we must rebuild our scientific potential in the Arctic: polar stations, geographic and hydrometeorological support — what we lost after the USSR collapse.

Igor Melamed , director general of CJSC «International center of regions development»

said: «there was an outstanding event this year: on the 21st of April a State program of the Rus

sian Federation Arctic zone development was signed. On the 22nd of April Security Council was hell, and in the beginning of May president signed a

Decree on boundaries of the Russian Federation Arctic zone, which ap proved its land boundaries. As a leader of development group I would like to tell about this program. By all the sonority of words «State program of the Russian Federation Arctic zone» it is done not as much, as it was planned». He noticed that it managed to allot areas, where business really participates in development of the Arctic zone. There are 12 areas. Mostly they are connected with extraction of commercial minerals in Chukotka, Murmansk region, Nenets and Yamalo-Nenets autonomous areas. «Mostly development of the Arctic is registered in 14 programs. We succeed to count that in the Arctic zone up to the year 2020 will be put up about 145 billion rubles. But for the State program of the Arctic zone development no money is given nowadays. At the meeting of Security Council the President said in his welcoming remarks: «To provide funding of this program, of this very program, since 2017». If you look at the list of realization following the results of the Security Council, this point was not included».

In meeting of the club also participated and spoke: Andrei Klepach , vice-chairman of State corporation «Vnesheconombank» (Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs); Vyacheslav Ruksha , director general of federal state unitary enterprise «Atomflot»; Evgeny Ambrosov , first Deputy Director General of JSC «Sovkomflot»; Valery Mit’ko , president of Saint-Petersburg scientific public organization «Arctic civic academy of sciences»; Leonid Kalashnikov , first vicechairman of the State Duma Committee on international affairs; Lev Voronkov , professor of the department of European integration, leader of north-european direction of the Center of north-european and baltic researches of MGIMO (Moscow State University of Foreign Affairs) scientific-coordination council on international researches; Vladimir Barbin , ambassador atheist of The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation; Vyacheslav Zilanov , chairman of Coordination Council of associations, unions and enterprises of Northern basin fishing industry, etc.

Speeches of participants are published in: «Problems and perspectives of effective exploitation and development of the Arctic zone and adjoining sea areas of Russia. Materials of the meeting of «Mercury club» October, 8, 2014». Moscow, TPP-Inform publ., 2014. Everyone who is interested in problems of Russian Arctic development have an opportunity directly to get acquainted with texts of speeches of the meeting’s participants of «Mercury club» in «Arctic encyc- lopedia» of journal «Arctic and North»: URL: /b6d/

Yury F. Lukin, doctor of historical sciences, professor, Honored Worker of Higher Education of the Russian Federation editor in chief of electronic scientific journal «Arctic and North», November 2014