State Duma approves Chekunkov as Russian Far East development minister

MOSCOW. May 14 (Interfax) - The State Duma has endorsed the appointment of Alexei Chekunkov as the minister for the development of the Russian Far East and Arctic; he will hold this post for the second time.

As the Far East and Arctic development minister, Chekunkov will coordinate state policy on the socioeconomic development of the Far Eastern and Arctic regions, state policy on developing Russia's priority territories, the establishment and operations of free and special economic zones, advanced development territories, and the implementation of deliveries in the north.

Chekunkov was born in Minsk on October 3, 1980. He graduated from the Department of International Economic Relations of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Moscow State Institute of International Relations and holds a master's degree in state and municipal management from Far Eastern Federal University.

He worked in senior positions in Russia's direct investment sector and managed major projects of international and Russian financial organizations in the Far East, among others. Chekunkov was appointed minister for the development of the Far East and the Arctic in 2020.