President Vladimir Putin called on Russian companies to help accelerate the development of advanced technologies as declining state funding and falling patent applications hamper the Kremlin’s push for technological self-sufficiency.
Speaking at a meeting of the Council for Science and Education in the Siberian city of Novosibirsk, Putin said Russia must “significantly accelerate” the development of “technologies of the future” to safeguard its sovereignty, economy and defense capabilities.
“Without any exaggeration, literally everything in the modern world depends on the speed at which innovations are created and, of course, introduced: our sovereignty, economic development and the fulfillment of both civilian and critical defense tasks, which today are closely intertwined technologically,” Putin said.
He said Russia should focus its “strategic scientific assets” on the effort and called for the “maximum concentration of efforts” by everyone involved in the country’s scientific and technological development.
Putin’s appeal comes as Russia seeks to reduce its dependence on foreign technology amid Western sanctions imposed over the war in Ukraine. But federal funding for civilian research has declined in real terms, while patent applications remain well below prewar levels and the inflow of foreign technology has fallen sharply.
