The President signed the Executive Order approving the national security strategy for the period through to 2020 in the aim of consolidating efforts by the federal and regional authorities, and Russia’s organizations and citizens to guarantee the country’s national security.
The national security strategy’s text is published on the Russian Security Council website: http://www.scrf.gov.ru (in Russian).
The strategy presents a brief analysis of the situation and development trends in the world today, and examines Russia’s place in it.
The document lists Russia’s strategic national priorities and gives the broad outlines of the national security situation. It focuses particularly on national defence, raising people’s living standards, economic aspects of security, developing science and education, the environment, and also questions of strategic stability and equal strategic partnership.
The strategy states that Russia will act within international law to protect its national interests, carrying out a rational and pragmatic foreign policy that excludes costly confrontation, including a new arms race.
The strategy is the basic document for national security planning and development work, and also the basis for cooperation between the government authorities and public groups and organisations in the aim of protecting national interests and guaranteeing personal, public and state security.
Work began in 2004 on the strategy, which was to replace the 1997 National Security Concept. The drafting process accelerated following an instruction from the President in June 2008. The document was discussed at a Security Council meeting in March, and an extra month was given to complete the final version.