Earlier this month Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin signed a series of orders to determine the needed funds and sources for Russia’s national genetic database program.
The move followed a visit to the Kurchatov Institute — a secretive research organization headed by President Putin’s close ally Mikhail Kovalchuk — which is leading Russia’s genetic research program.
Putin, who has sought to transform Russia into a world leader in genetic technologies, ordered in 2020 the creation of a ‘National Genetic Information Database.’
As reported by Meduza in April, he personally supervises the implementation of these programs, and he’s put his own relatives and closest friends (in particular, his eldest daughter Maria Vorontsova and the cellist Sergey Roldugin) in charge of overseeing the work.
In 2018, Russia allocated $1.7 billion toward genetic research, ordered “genetic passports” assigned to all Russians by 2025 under the national chemical and biological security strategy. Scientists speculated that “genetic passports” could refer to either genetic markers to identify individuals or a detailed list of individual traits and health risks.
In addition, a “biorepository prototype” should be ready with assistance from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) by 2024.
In total, the Kremlin’s overall spending on projects involving genetics could actually reach 230 billion rubles ($3 billion) in the coming years, according to Meduza.
