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The ship will be built as part of the Development of the Northern Sea Route federal project. It will be the fifth serial or the sixth Project 22220 nuclear-powered icebreaker. The Russian icebreaker fleet includes 34 diesel and 7 nuclear-powered icebreakers, namely, the lead ship Arktika and the nuclear-powered icebreakers Sibir, Ural, Yamal, 50 Let Pobedy, Taymyr and Vaygach.

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President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, friends.

Today is a major, gratifying landmark event which is the keel laying of the new nuclear-powered icebreaker Leningrad at the Baltic Shipyard in St Petersburg.

Tomorrow will mark a special and sacred date in the history of St Petersburg, our northern capital, and the whole country, which is the 80^th anniversary of the lifting of the Siege of Leningrad. The new powerful icebreaker will be another tribute to commemorate the immortal feat of Leningrad, the courage and the uncompromising will of its defenders and residents, who did not surrender and overcame it all, endured it all, and crushed the Nazis. The life and unity of the generation of victors will forever remain a great moral example for us in our fight for sovereignty, freedom, and our Motherland, and a good example for us in labour and in battle.

Today, together we are taking another step towards strengthening the technological and industrial capacity of our country. The high-performance modern nuclear icebreaker Leningrad will become the fifth ship in its series. After it is completed, it will sail along the Northern Sea Route, participate in important programmes to develop and study the Arctic, and ensure the delivery of cargo, construction materials, fuel, and, in general, reliable and sustainable shipping in the difficult and hard-to-reach Arctic latitudes.

Russia has an unparalleled – I would like to emphasise – unparalleled icebreaker fleet, the largest in the world, which is an enormous competitive advantage for us that opens vast opportunities for developing logistics and industry, creating new jobs, carrying out the integrated development of Arctic urban and rural areas, implementing truly global projects, and pursuing cooperation with our international partners and friends, and everyone who is willing to work with Russia.

I was in Chukotka not long ago, met with people and talked to the region’s leaders. Chukotka, Yamal, Taymyr, Yakutia, and all our other Arctic regions cannot wait to see new powerful icebreakers and other large ice-class ships entering service. Without a doubt, we will work consistently to address these tasks, to expand our Arctic fleet, and to set new ambitious benchmarks for ourselves. We will keep working on it.

I believe that our workers, engineers, nuclear scientists, and specialists of various professions, as well as shipyards and related enterprises will complete their assigned tasks on time, meaning that the icebreaker Leningrad will sail to the Arctic soon. I am certain that it will proudly bear its glorious name and serve for the benefit of Russia for many years to come.

I wish the builders and the future Leningrad crew every success.

Thank you very much. Good luck.

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