Aisen Nikolaev, the acting head of Russia’s Sakha Republic, has said that plans to resurrect the extinct woolly mammoth through cloning, could see a unique new nature reserve open in Siberia within the next decade.

Speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF), Nikolaev revealed that Russia was actively working with South Korean scientists in an attempt to bring back the prehistoric animals.

"Back in 2014, a group of my friends and I proposed a project to create an ice age park with mammoths," he said. "Everyone laughed then, but they’re not laughing now."

The majority of woolly mammoths were wiped out around 10,000 years ago during the early part of our current geological age.

Nikolaev’s speech at the EEF highlighted the work being done between Russian and South Korean scientists to bring the animals back.

If successful, the cloned mammoths would be introduced to Pleistocene Park, whose management is currently working to recreate the northern subarctic steppe grassland ecosystem that existed in the area during the last glacial period.

"This is the project of the future," said Nikolaev. "I believe that in our lifetime, we'll be able to clone mammoths. All the prerequisites for this are there."