The manned submersibles “Mir” staged another series of submersion in Southern Baikal on August 1.  The Mir-1 manned submersible’s crew included  Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Chairman of the Technical Board of the Fund for Protection of Lake Baikal Anatoly Sagalevich, and the pilot Viktor Nishcheta.  Completing the submersion on board of the manned submersible Mir-2 were: Chairman of the Guardianship Board of the Fund for Protection of Lake Baikal Mikhail Slipenchuk, the pilot Yevgeny Chernyayev, and All-Russia State Television and Radio Company (VGTRK) staff member Ilya Bernadsky.
The submersions lasted for about four hours, allowing the Mir-1 craft to reach a depth of 1,395 meters.
Speaking from on board the Metropoliya special-purpose ship, V. V. Putin shared his impressions about the submersion.  “These are special feelings, special sensations.  What I saw impresses, because you can finally see what Baikal is in all its splendor, in all its grandeur with your own eyes,” he noted.
According to V. V. Putin, he observed no changes in Lake Baikal’s environmental conditions.  “But we will continue to listen to the environmentalists’ warnings.  We will be basing our practical activities on expedience and environmental preservation concerns, while also thinking about the people that live and work here,” the prime minister underscored.