Russian Federation

The Russian Federation, with its approximately 17 million km2, is the largest country in the world and its territory extends between Europe and Asia. It borders Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia and North Korea. The Bering Strait separates it from the US state of Alaska and the Sea of Okhotsk from Japan. The long northern coast faces the Arctic Ocean.

Its landscape is varied, as is the climate, but it can be said that Russian geography is generally characterized by vast plains, often crossed by large rivers, and by very low hills.

The Ural Range marks the boundary of its European part from the vast Siberian plains in Asia, while near the eastern and southern borders are the Caucasus Range and the Altai Mountains. Its vast territory is rich in natural, mineral and hydrocarbon resources, such as oil and natural gas, of which Russia is a major exporter.

On October 24, 2018, in Moscow, the then Italian Ministry of the Environment, Land and Sea, (today MASE), and the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment of the Russian Federation signed a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperating in the field of environmental protection and sustainable development.

Counterparty: Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of the Russian Federation

Areas of intervention:

• adaptation to climate change;
• implementation of the best technologies available, including those aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions;
• sustainable forest management;
• integrated management of water resources;
• prevention and monitoring of air pollution and water resources;
• sustainable waste management;
• conservation of biological diversity of wildlife;
• other areas of mutual interest in the field of environmental protection.