‘Diplomacy of snow leopard’ clearly demonstrated in Kazan

Snow leopard saviours meet in Kazan

The event is unprecedented for Russia — representatives of all 12 countries of the world inhabited by snow leopards gathered in the Kazan City Hall. These are China, India, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Bhutan, Nepal, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia and Mongolia. Among the participants of the conference are scientists, officials, public figures, businessmen — all those who care about biodiversity issues, who have dedicated their lives to preserving wildlife and, in particular, saving the snow leopard.

As the organisers of the conference admitted, it was not easy to assemble such a representative forum: the ministry of foreign affairs joined in the work on visa support, the scientific community helped, and the Irbis Interregional Association and its head, Ali Uzdenov, played a huge role in the preparation. The representation of the distinguished guests was impressive. Andrey Turchak, the governor of the Altai Republic, took part in the conference together with Rustam Minnikhanov, the rais of Tatarstan. Deputy Minister Murad Kerimov arrived as a representative of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. The special representative of the president of Russia to the SCO, Bakhtiyor Khakimov, also participated. Other countries sent representatives of their environmental protection agencies and biodiversity conservation departments, and Kyrgyzstan's Deputy Minister of Ecology represented Kyrgyzstan.

Vladimir Putin greeted the conference participants with a telegram. We all remember how much attention the president paid to the protection of the Amur tiger and polar bear at the time — now he has taken control of protection of the snow leopard. The president noted that thanks to the enthusiasm of the conference participants, respect for nature is being formed and ecological culture is being strengthened.

“In this regard, I would like to note the significant and fruitful activities of the Irbis Centre for the Study and Conservation of the Snow Leopard Interregional Association. In close cooperation with government officials, zoologists, ecologists, local historians, reserve staff, and volunteers, the centre has managed to achieve tangible results in preserving the snow leopard and providing a safe and comfortable habitat. And of course, it is gratifying that, in many ways, thanks to your enthusiasm and dedication in society, especially among young people, a careful attitude towards nature is being formed, and the foundations of ecological culture are being strengthened," the telegram says.

In addition, the greeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was read out, who noted the importance of international cooperation in the conservation of the snow leopard.

“Long-term preservation and population growth of the snow leopard is possible only through the collective efforts of all countries in the habitat of this unique cat. It is necessary to consolidate the accumulated experience in the field of conservation of biological diversity, jointly create specially protected natural territories and animal rehabilitation systems, combat poaching and train scientific personnel. The development of international cooperation is the key to success in protecting the snow leopard," Lavrov said in his greeting.

Alexander Shadrikov, Tatarstan's Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, said in his welcoming speech at the conference that the snow leopard is not just a symbol of the Asian mountains.

“It is the guardian of the delicate natural balance, on which the existence of dozens of other species depends. Unfortunately, today it is facing unprecedented threats: habitat loss, poaching, climate change and anthropogenic impact in general. But where there are challenges, opportunities inevitably arise," the minister said optimistically. “The main goal of our conference is to combine efforts into a single, coordinated global strategy for the conservation of the snow leopard.”

Tatarstan has built a scientific centre in Altai

In his speech at the plenary session, Murad Kerimov, Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Russian Federation, spoke about environmental work to preserve the leopard population in Russia. Thus, specially protected natural areas play an important role in the conservation of the snow leopard. Their total area in Russia is 244 million hectares, of which more than 5.5 million hectares are in the range of the snow leopard. The most important of them are in the republics of Tyva, Altai and the Krasnoyarsk Krai. From 2018 to 2024, 25 new nature protection territories were created in our country and 6 protected areas increased. In total, the area of protected areas has increased by 5.5 million hectares.

“We will continue this work within the framework of the national project “Environmental Well-Being”. The Russian Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment supports Tatarstan's initiative to develop a new program for the conservation of the snow leopard and its habitat. We are ready to continue cooperation and pay special attention to the fight against illegal trade in rare wild animals and other pressing issues," Kerimov said.

Let us remind you that the snow leopard is a symbol of the Turkic peoples, an ancient totem of our distant ancestors who came from Altai, from those places where the majestic, mighty leopard was considered the master of the mountains from time immemorial. Realnoe Vremya has already told about the history of how the snow leopard appeared on the coat of arms of the republic. And now the rais of Tatarstan gathered almost all the heirs of this totem in its capital to join forces to save it. As many participants of the conference rightly noted, the snow leopard does not have a passport, it does not need a visa. They move freely between the borders of countries, create “interethnic” families — which means that they are a model of “snow leopard diplomacy”, this expression has been heard more than once. So, in fact, there are no “your” and “our” snow leopards. There is a beautiful wild cat that considers the mountains of Altai and Tibet, Sayan and Tien Shan, Pamir and Hindu Kush to be its own. And so that it doesn't disappear from the earth, we need to unite to save them. Despite that the only habitat of the snow leopard in Tatarstan is its coat of arms, our republic has become one of the centres of concentration of efforts to save this species.

Rustam Minnikhanov reminded reporters that initially, the territory of the Kamsko-Ustinsky district was considered for the revival of the snow leopard population in Russia. But then it was decided to do it anyway in the natural habitat of the snow leopard — in Altai.

“When we found ourselves in the Altai Republic, we chose the ideal place to create the Snow Leopard Research Centre. We have a modern world-class centre equipped with everything necessary. We cannot afford the disappearance of the snow leopard in Russia. With the support of Russian President Vladimir Putin, we will gradually revive the population. It is important to expand the range of the snow leopard, but there should be no conflicts with the local population. The snow leopard was there, which means it needs to be restored and preserved for the future generation," said the rais of Tatarstan.

Four leopards already live in the scientific centre, built at Tatneft's expense — three were brought from Kyrgyzstan, one female from the Ural zoo. The snow leopards will live in comfortable, very spacious enclosures and, if possible, breed. And scientists will work in an extensive, well-equipped laboratory. With the direct participation of the Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology of Kazan University, it is planned to study the leopard's genome and identify genes that allow it to adapt to thin air and cold. In addition, they will study the biology of the snow leopard and its ethology (behavioral features). After all, since this cat lives in hard-to-reach places, the snow leopard is still a mysterious beast, and we don't know much about it. The centre, which Tatarstan has built and is launching in Altai, is designed to reveal the secrets of the “master of the mountains”.

Yesterday, during the conference, a large-scale cooperation agreement was signed in the field of studying, protecting and increasing the population of snow leopards. It will allow to implement joint scientific programs on the basis of the facilities of the Scientific Centre “Snow Leopard” in Altai. The agreement was signed by representatives of the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Academy of Sciences of Tatarstan, Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology of the Kazan Federal University, the Irbis Association and the Ministry of Ecology of Tatarstan. And then a representative of Tatneft handed over the certificate for the Snow Leopard Centre facilities it had built to the consortium of strategic partners.

In 10 years, the leopard population in Russia has increased 8 times.

The Russian leopard population is perhaps the smallest — about 90 species now live in our mountains. For comparison, China has boasted that it has increased its population to 4,000 leopards, and, for example, about a thousand of these rare cats live in Mongolia. However, this is already a success, because ten years ago there were no more than fifteen snow leopards in Russia: together we managed to increase the population to its current values, and then scientists and environmental organisations set themselves the task of bringing the number of snow leopards in our country to 150 individuals.

Currently, leopards in Russia are divided into four groups: the largest — 54 species — lives in Altai. Fifteen snow leopards live in Tuva, 7 cats were recorded in Buryatia, 11 — in that part of the Sayan Mountains, which is located in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. But in the Irkutsk region and Buryatia, where the snow leopard also used to live, it is no longer recorded.

The guests of the Realnoe Vremya field studio discussed the problem from various sides. On the one hand, it may seem that we need to be like in China, or at least like in Mongolia. But, as Academician Sergey Naidenko, the director of the Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution of the Russian Academy of Sciences, notes, there cannot be so many snow leopards in Russia. After all, the leopard enters Russia from the very edge of its range, only along its northern border. Bringing the population to 150 individuals is quite a feasible task. But thousands are a utopia, we just don't have so many biotopes for this animal. Moreover, leopards do not settle in herds, each cat needs its own (and rather large) hunting territory.

Pakistan gives Moscow two snow leopards as present

Representatives of Mongolia and Pakistan told our publication that in these countries one of the main problems with leopards is conflict with the local population. Shepherds drive their herds to the mountains to feed — and the snow leopard, naturally, cannot avoid the temptation to eat a fat sheep, goat, or even more so a yak. After all, its usual prey — steinbock — still needs to be chased. Moreover, steinbocks themselves are actively killed by hunters. For a cattleman, the most obvious way to protect his property is to track down a leopard and shoot it. Thus, the number of snow leopards was greatly reduced until measures were taken in these countries: insurance from the state. A leopard has eaten your goat, and you will receive its fair value in return. In some countries, instead of monetary insurance, there is natural compensation (for this purpose, the state maintains so-called compensation herds, from which cattle are allocated to those livestock breeders whose farms were affected by a leopard). The result is impressive — the population is growing.

And the representative of Pakistan, Sardar Laghari, even made a sensational statement: the country (which does not have many their own leopards — about 300 species) gives two leopards to the Moscow Zoo as a present. One is a kitten whose mother was killed by poachers. It's a male. The second is an adult female. Thus, it is planned to replenish the “leopard” gene pool of the Moscow Zoo, because the snow leopards that live there are no longer very young, and it is necessary to replenish their population with fresh blood.

Realnoe Vremya asked Sardar Laghari if Pakistan would be so kind as to give a leopard to Tatarstan as well. The Pakistani specialist said that this was not within his competence, because the gift to the Moscow Zoo was agreed upon at the highest level — the decision was made by the prime minister of the country.

By the way, the day before the meeting Sardar Laghari and Rustam Minnikhanov met, at which the Pakistani delegate conveyed a message from his Prime Minister to the rais of Tatarstan.

Kazan Resolution

At the plenary session of the conference, all 12 participating countries adopted the Kazan Resolution. Daria Petrova, the director of the Irbis Centre for the Study and Conservation of the Snow Leopard Interregional Association, said that more than 10 years have passed since the adoption of the global program for the conservation of the snow leopard and the Bishkek Resolution in 2013. In the changed conditions, the plans should be updated. At the initiative of the rais of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, the Kazan Resolution was prepared, which initiates the development of a new program for a new historical period. It takes into account modern historical realities and will set a course for developing cooperation and consolidating the success achieved.

The resolution recognises the need to preserve the snow leopard and its high-altitude habitats in the changing conditions associated with climate change, degradation and fragmentation of the range. At the same time, it is necessary to take into account both the strengthening of environmental sustainability and the interests of indigenous peoples and local communities. In addition, the participating countries agreed on the need to increase the effectiveness of law enforcement activities (read: actively catch poachers and dealers in skins and other body parts of leopards), strengthen measures to combat illegal trade in endangered wild animals.