Stanislav Goncharenko: it is necessary to create Eurasia tourist-and-business centre on Lake Baikal

Stanislav Goncharenko, president of Eurasian transport innovative centre, invited as an expert to VI Baikal economic forum, says that it is necessary to create on Lake Baikal a Eurasia tourist and business centre, which could be equal in scope and influence to Davos, Singapore, Shanghai, the UAE and others. He considers Baikal as "world ecological capital", UNESCO officially authorized its uniqueness and it should be proved by high business activity.

We face a tough task – develop intense business operations in Baikal region without hurting ecological balance", Goncharenko said. "Lake Baikal is centre of Siberia, it is great creative factor. And it is necessary to use it for new cycle of Russia development, breakthrough to future, to support Russia's high role on the world and its empowerment in world business and political system. It can be implemented with foundation of large industrial systems on main traffic routes, making integrated traffic and industrial sectors, which overlay all regions and drive our country to new, higher, quality, creating independence of external threats".

Baikal tourist and business centre creation is driven by globalization of world business system and also by fact that Siberia and Far East becomes a priority region for resource conversion and industrial production development. Considering Stanislav Goncharenko's words, Baikal region can be a starter of creation of new economic pole in Asian Russia, because it is located in centre of several existing and future local and international travel corridors, such as «East-West» («Transsiberian»), Ulan-Bator railway, which joins Baikal region with Mongolia and further to China and Southeast Asian countries. There are international airports in Irkutsk and Ulan-Ude. The region is linked with Northern Sea route by the Lena and the Yenisei rivers. Future North-Russain Eurasian mainline railway from south edge of Sakhalin island to the Barents and Baltic seas will also come through this region. Baikal-Amur Mainline, as a part of this railway is already working. Construction of North Siberian Mainline is considered in the Russian Federation's transport strategy for the period up to 2030.

«Junction of Transsiberian and Baikal-Amur Mainline is considered in Baikal region. Here, in Baikal region will be straight-through overhead high speed railway with newest environmental friendly and economically possible technologies from Moscow to Vladivostok. Regions of Siberia and Far East will be no more isolated from central part of country, we will be able to decrease dangerous demographic disbalance in Russia, expand world tourist and business flow. The golden age of region will be inevitable", Goncharenko said.

In Goncharenko's opinion, considering problem complication and its importance to whole country, it is necessary to develop a concept "The Baikal is environmental world capital" (Baikal is tourist and business centre of Eurasia") on governmental level. To implement this concept it is necessary to generate federal special-purpose program together with relevant environmental protection legislation, special industrial specialization, diverse transport and logistics system, supporting multilevel regional provision to active business zone, mass tourism and transportation hub of world level. Also Stanislav Goncharenko mentioned that it is necessary to generate a concept of high speed overhead railway between Central and Eastern regions of Russia and generate federal target program for implementation.