Russian Maritime Board chairman wants complete overhaul of internal waterways infrastructure for safe navigation

NIZHNY NOVGOROD. Feb 6 (Interfax) - A complete overhaul of the internal waterways infrastructure is needed for safe navigation in Russia, Nikolai Patrushev, Russian presidential aide and chairman of the Russian Maritime Board, said.

Patrushev held a meeting on the safety of river and sea navigation in Nizhny Novgorod on Thursday on the orders of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"The necessary measures are being taken to ensure safe navigation in accordance with the Russian president's orders. Special attention is given to the use of the transport and logistics potential of the Northern Sea Route, which provides free access to the countries of Southeast Asia, India, the Persian Gulf and Africa. The international transit corridor North-South is actively developing, the comprehensive territory development program Great Volga Route is being formed," Patrushev said.

To create modern transport and logistics systems and to ensure safe navigation, "it is important to use the potential of internal waterways, to conduct comprehensive modernization of the port infrastructure, to increase the density of the sea coastal monitoring network, to beef up the Russian satellite group, which provides continual communication, navigation, including ice monitoring," he said.

"Besides, it is necessary to ensure guaranteed depths for the movement of vessels, safe navigation hydrotechnical facilities, and also conduct a complete overhaul of the internal waterways infrastructure," Patrushev said.