Battered war ministry invests billions in Severomorsk entertainment complex
Deputy war minister and former FSB officer Pavel Fradkov has visited the Northern Fleet headquarters city to inspect the ongoing reconstruction of the local Officers’ Club and sports centre.
Lieutenant General Fradkov arrived in Severomorsk this week, the city that hosts Russia’s Northern Fleet.
The visit coincided with a major Northern Fleet missile exercise in the Barents Sea. However, the deputy minister did not travel to the Kola Peninsula to observe a submarine missile launch. Instead, the purpose of his visit was to inspect the renovation of military housing and social infrastructure.
Military towns across the Kola Peninsula are in dire need of reconstruction and modernisation. During recent winters, military families have repeatedly experienced failures in local heating systems.
In Pechenga, Sputnik, Korzunovo and other military settlements, indoor temperatures have at times fallen to around 10°C.
Instead, his attention was focused on an entertainment complex and sports facilities.
Amid its war against Ukraine and unprecedented battlefield losses, the Russian war ministry is investing billions of roubles in the reconstruction of the Officers’ Club in Severomorsk.
Fradkov was shown around the 6,254-square-metre facility, which was originally built in 1954. Prior to renovation, the Officers’ Club housed a 700-seat auditorium, a 90-seat conference hall, a 60-seat press room, a dance studio, a café, rehearsal rooms for artistic groups and an officers’ lounge.
The deputy minister also inspected the nearby sports centre and city stadium, both of which are undergoing extensive reconstruction.
The Officers’ Club and associated sports facilities rank among the Defence Ministry’s top social infrastructure priorities on the Kola Peninsula.
The work is being carried out by the Military Construction Company, a subsidiary of the Russian armed forces.
According to the company, the renovated Officers’ Club will feature a modern stage, a library and a museum. The renowned Northern Fleet Song and Dance Ensemble is also expected to return to the venue after a lengthy absence.
The reconstruction of the sports centre and stadium is being implemented in two parallel phases. The first includes the construction of a football stand with 2,644 seats. The second involves the creation of an ice hockey arena with a 500-seat stand and facilities for ice-making equipment.
Pavel Fradkov is the son of Mikhail Fradkov, the former head of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR).
He attended Suvorov military schools in St Petersburg and Moscow before graduating from the FSB Academy.
After serving in the FSB, he was appointed head of the Federal Agency for State Property Management in 2012. In 2021, he became first deputy chief of staff to Vladimir Putin and, in June 2024, was appointed deputy minister of defence.
In his current role, Fradkov oversees the management of military property and land resources, as well as the construction of facilities for the needs of the Russian war ministry.
