The 17th Congress of the Russian Geographical Society

The event took place at the State Kremlin Palace. The congress participants re-elected Sergei Shoigu Shoigu SergeiSecretary of the Russian Federation Security Council as RGS President.

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Address by the President of Russia

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Friends,

I am delighted to welcome the participants and guests of the 17^th Congress of the Russian Geographical Society.

This year marks a number of important dates for this organisation, primarily, the 80^th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

We are aware of the great contribution to Victory and to defeating Nazism made by geographers, topographers, and meteorologists. Many large-scale WWII operations, indeed, probably all of them, used the help, support, and direct involvement of these specialists.

We are also aware of the number of initiatives implemented by the RGS search teams today. They are working in hard-to-access areas and the seas ranging from the Baltic Sea to the Pacific Ocean. The results of their work are impressive and help preserve historical memory and the truth.

The 180^th anniversary of the Russian Geographical Society is the second landmark date.

I would like to once again congratulate you and your colleagues on the occasion of this anniversary and to point out that the achievements of the active RGS members are, in many regards, comparable to the achievements of your predecessors.

You were the first in modern-day Russia to massively enlist volunteers in carrying out major projects. You were the first to launch programmes for preserving rare animals, and these programmes laid the groundwork for systematic steps in this field at the state level.

Or take, for example, the major cleanup effort in the Arctic. It is a massive nationwide project involving thousands of volunteers. This, too, was an RGS initiative from inception to realisation.

The Russian Geographical Society has always been active in high latitudes and has played a leading role in exploring and developing the Arctic. Today, it continues to carry out environmental missions, to explore the region's history, and to open new tourist routes.

I would like the Government and the heads of our Arctic, northern territories and regions be mindful of the fact that the RGS has vast experience working in challenging polar conditions, and this experience must by all means be leveraged in implementing development programmes addressing every area of focus from the economy and infrastructure to environment, tourism, and the social sphere.

Without a doubt, the RGS should be supported in bringing to fruition promising projects such as the Artur Chilingarov Ice Base, or the Krasnoyarsk Arctic Exploration Park and Museum on Molokov Island which is truly an iconic place for researchers, historians, and pilots engaged in polar exploration and a starting point for our achievements in developing the Arctic.

To be continued.