In Vladivostok, the 10th anniversary Eastern Economic Forum is taking place, with Russian President Vladimir Putin and representatives of government institutions and companies from 70 countries participating. The plenary session includes the Prime Minister of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Sonexay Siphandone; the Prime Minister of Mongolia, Gombojavyn Zandanshatar; and the Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress of China, Li Hongzhong.
In his speech, Vladimir Putin emphasized the traditional business-oriented nature of the tenth EEF, which was organized to “fully unlock the resource, industrial, and logistics potential of this strategically important region of Russia in the dynamically growing Asia-Pacific region, and to improve the quality of life for residents of the Russian Far East.”
The Russian leader informed those gathered about the State Program for the Development of the Far East, which sets ambitious targets for accelerated economic and technological growth. "And these efforts are producing the expected results. In recent years, in many key indicators—primarily economic—the Far East has taken a leading position, outpacing the national average growth rates."
"Over the past 10 years, the gross regional product of the Far East has increased more than 2.5 times—from four trillion rubles to 11 trillion," said V. Putin. "The investment dynamics in the Far Eastern regions are such that last year their volume was twice as high as it was a decade ago in real terms. By comparison, for Russia as a whole, it was only one and a half times higher. That’s also a good result. But still, the Far East is performing better."
"The Far East’s resource base and mineral extraction in the region are expanding. For example, coal and gold production in the region has grown nearly 1.7 times over the past 10 years."
"In the rivers of the Far East, there are already hydroelectric power plants in operation, and more shall be built, producing environmentally clean energy. Their construction requires modern engineering and technological solutions, and our leading company, RusHydro, possesses such experience and capabilities. But it is obvious that the development of hydropower requires significant capital investment," the Russian leader specifically noted.
“We will continue the modernization of the Eastern railway network—the BAM and the Trans-Siberian Railway. By 2032, their carrying capacities are expected to be one and a half times higher than at the beginning of this year.”
According to the current federal project, the port capacities of the Far East are expected to increase by an additional 115 million tons of cargo per year by 2030.
In the Far East, transport bridges to China have already been built—the “Nizhne-Leninskoye–Tunchang” and “Blagoveshchensk–Heihe” bridges. Plans also include the construction of new bridges, including one to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea across the Tumannaya River, which is expected to open next year.
“Of course, a particularly significant topic—both for the Far East and for our entire country, as well as for the entire Eurasian continent—is the development of the Trans-Arctic Transport Corridor. It runs from St. Petersburg through Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, and the Northern Sea Route to Vladivostok. According to V. Putin, this is a comprehensive system that should integrate maritime, rail, and road transport. It will allow the potential of the largest rivers—such as the Ob, Yenisei, and Lena—to be utilized,” said V. Putin.
Given the successful experience gained, 18 advanced development territories have been established in the Far East. V. Putin proposed introducing a unified preferential regime for business throughout the entire Far East and the Arctic, noting that this should be implemented starting January 1, 2027.
This year, the program of the Eastern Economic Forum (September 3–6) included business dialogue sessions with China, Thailand, ASEAN countries, and others, as well as an academic forum.
