The anniversary website 25кц.рф has been launched to celebrate this milestone
On July 12, 2026, the Coordination Center for TLD .RU/.РФ marked 25 years. Today it is one of the key organizations streamlining the operation and development of the Russian internet.
From a coordination group to the national registry
The history of the Coordination Center began long before its official establishment. It all started on December 4, 1993, with the signing of the Agreement on .RU Domain Administration and the establishment of the Coordination Group for .RU at the Russian Institute for Public Networks (RIPN). This coordination group eventually grew into the Coordination Center for TLD .RU/.РФ.
The center’s official founding date is July 12, 2001, which marks the establishment of the Coordination Center for the Country-Level Internet Domain. It was started by the Regional Public Center of Internet Technology (ROCIT), the Union of Internet Operators, the Russian Association of Networks and Services (RANS), and the Russian Institute for Public Networks. The group divided administrative and technical functions while also launching a distributed registration system through independent companies. In 2002, the Coordination Group handed over its authority to the Coordination Center. On January 4, 2006, the change of the Russian country-level domain administrator in ICANN was also complete: corresponding changes were incorporated into the IANA top-level domain database.
Key milestones and mission expansion
Over the quarter of a century, the Coordination Center evolved from the administrator of one domain into a comprehensive digital development institute. Below are the biggest milestones:
- 2010: Delegation of the world’s first Cyrillic domain, .РФ, and the organization of the first Russian Internet Governance Forum (RIGF).
- 2012: The launch of major cybersecurity and digital literacy projects (Domain Patrol, Netoscope, the educational game Explore the Internet & Govern It).
- 2015 and 2020: The expansion of the founding members. At different times, they included the Russian Ministry of Communications and Mass Media and the Internet Development Institute. The Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Media (Roskomnadzor) joined in 2020.
- August 2025: The historic expansion of the characters available in the Cyrillic domain .РФ. Twenty-six new characters were added to the list to support 18 national languages of the peoples of Russia.
- May 2026: The Coordination Center was granted registrar functions for the domains of government customers.
Facts and figures
The Russian segment of domain addressing demonstrates steady growth these days. Over 6.1 million domain names are registered in .RU, and over 800,000 are registered in the Cyrillic domain .РФ. Some 185 accredited registrars in 13 Russian cities provide domain registration services. Their partner networks cover all regions of Russia.
Happy anniversary, Coordination Center
The anniversary website 25кц.рф has been launched to mark the big date. The website offers unique archives, Runet development statistics, and much more.
The greeting section at 25кц.рф is filled with warm wishes from government representatives, Russian and international partners, and national registries. They praise the Coordination Center for its priceless contribution to Russia’s technological sovereignty, the development of security infrastructure, and preserving the language diversity in the digital age.
“Over 25 years, .RU and .РФ have become integral parts of the country’s daily life. The domains are used by millions of individual users, government bodies, national projects, corporations, public organizations, and educational institutions. The Coordination Center deals with many tasks such as strengthening security and stability of the national domain infrastructure, further development of the domains .RU and .РФ; supporting registrars and users, as well as organizing educational and social projects focused on Runet development. We want to thank everybody who has been with us all these years – our partners, registrars, colleagues and users. We have come a long way together and look forward to the next 25 years,” said Director of the Coordination Center Andrey Vorobyev.
The Coordination Center continues its extensive efforts to develop international cooperation, representing Russia in international industry organizations and strengthening links with other national registries. The center organizes major industry conferences like TLDCON and RIGF and implements innovative standards for digital inclusivity. The company is open to future challenges and projects that ensure the security and stability of the Russian internet.
