In addition to other notable developments, the Sixth Eastern Economic Forum 2021 (EEF-2021), held on September 2–4, in Vladivostok (see EDM, September 14), unraveled an aspect that could have strategic long-term implications for Russia’s future development. Specifically, during the event, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu put forth an idea—first mentioned publicly at the end of August (Lenta, August 5)—urging the creation of “three and even better five” cities in Siberia with up to a million inhabitants each. He added that these metropolises would become “the new poles of attraction for not only Russian citizens but also our [Russia’s] numerous compatriots from the CIS [Commonwealth of Independent States] and beyond […] these centers will give a powerful impulse for the further development of the Siberian region and, at the end of the day, sustainable development of Russia’s economy in general” (RIA Novosti, September 6). The idea was wholeheartedly supported by Viktoria Abramchenko, the Russian deputy prime minister with responsibility for the agro-industrial complex, natural resources and ecology. Abramchenko is one of the government’s main curators of the Siberian Federal District. She stated that the initiative expressed by Shoigu is in fact a modernized version of Soviet regional development policy, defining it as a “cluster-based approach” (RBC, September 6).
Russia’s ‘Re-Exploration’ of Siberia and the Far East: Tools, Plans, Ambitions (Part One) (Sergey Sukhankin, The Jamestown Foundation)
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