The World Heritage Committee, 

1. Having examined Documents WHC/18/42.COM/8B and WHC/18/42.COM/INF.8B2, 

2. Approves the significant boundary modification of Central Sikhote-Alin, Russian Federation, to include Bikin River Valley in the property.

3. Takes note of the following provisional statement of Outstanding Universal Value:

4. Strongly recommends the State Party to

a) Complete the process of configuration and designation of the nominated property’s buffer zone in conformity with Clause 10 of Article 2 of Russian Federal Law and consistent with the requirements of Paragraph 104 of the Operational Guidelines, with the aim of providing the necessary protective measures to safeguard the property against current and foreseen anthropogenic impacts,

b) Finalize the preparation of the Integrated Management Plan for the nominated extension, to provide a single and cohesive framework for the management of Bikin National Park and the existing World Heritage property Central Sikhote-Alin as a whole;

5. Commends and encourages the continuation of the State Party’s efforts to strengthen the involvement of local indigenous people in governance, planning and management of the nominated extension through, inter alia, the establishment of the Council of Indigenous Minority Groups, and to build on the achievements of the Consultative Working Group; 

6. Also encourages the State Party to develop and adopt a long-term vision in order to ensure connectivity of Amur Tiger habitat at the landscape level, through a range of strategies, including building enhanced connectivity with other protected areas, and investigating conservation connectivity strategies outside the formal protected area system. The State Party may also wish to consider the possibility of nominating further such areas as extensions to the nominated property in the future;

7. Requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 February 2019 the Integrated Management Plan, including the necessary documentation regarding the configuration and designation of the buffer zone of the property; 

8. Further requests the State Party to submit to the World Heritage Centre, by 1 December 2019, an updated report on the state of conservation of the property and the implementation of the above, for examination by the World Heritage Committee at its 44th session in 2020.