MOSCOW, December 29. /TASS/. Tourism development, implementation of scientific projects featuring international experts, the infrastructures’ upgrade must be the key factors in development of the Spitsbergen Archipelago, a Russian senator, Elena Shumilova, told TASS.

"The key development factors <…> must be the general tourism development, implementation of scientific projects featuring foreign experts, and the upgrade of ports and coastal infrastructures," she said.

At the same time, the senator pointed to the current anti-virus limitations which hinder development processes and global markets.

"The development of Russian settlements on the Spitsbergen Archipelago depends on their legal status. It is the world’s only territory of common exploitation by two countries - Norway and Russia. <…> The development of the Russian Arctic, including settlements on the Spitsbergen, requires the development of the entire sectors of the northern economy and the social sphere, implementation of dozens projects on the shore and offshore," she said.

Earlier, Russia’s Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed an order on federal subsidies to Russian businesses working on the Spitsbergen Archipelago. Specialists say, the new regulations, which will come into force from January 1, 2022, would mean bigger control of used subsidies.

An agreement on the Spitsbergen was signed in 1920 by the UK, Denmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the US, France, Sweden and Japan. The document granted the sovereignty over the archipelago to Norway, and announced it a demilitarized zone. All the undersigned countries were granted the right to commercial activities and scientific studies on the archipelago and in its waters. In 1924, the USSR recognized Norway’s sovereignty over the Spitsbergen, and in 1935 the USSR ratified the document.