Russia is against political approaches to international cooperation in Arctic

MOSCOW, December 16. /TASS/. Cooperation in the Arctic region will be successful if based on scientific approaches and scientific data, while its politicization is ineffective, Ambassador at Large for the Arctic Cooperation at Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Senior Arctic Official of the Russian Federation to the Arctic Council Nikolay Korchunov said at the 12th international forum Arctic: Present and Future. "We understand that cooperation in the Arctic region will be successful if based on a scientific approach and the widest possible scientific data," he said. "The most negative trend is the politicization of scientific relations. This leads to fragmentation of cooperation, increasing risks, this not only affects numbers of scientific research, but also to their quality." According to him, a scientific approach to the economic development of the Arctic will also favor cutting economic and climate risks. He highlighted the Arctic's potential for the application of scientific and technological innovations. "The Arctic is becoming a kind of laboratory and a territory for the creation and testing of advanced resource-saving technologies, a unique testing laboratory," he said. Increasing cooperation in research between regional educational institutions can be used to overcome political approaches and to develop scientific cooperation, the diplomat said. Work in this direction continues, he added. "We are aware of good examples of consortia between Russian universities, which attract international partners." The Ammosov North-Eastern Federal University's President Anatoly Nikolaev also emphasized the negative impact of politicization on Arctic cooperation. At the same time, he added that despite the existing restrictions, the university has been keeping scientific and educational ties. "We still don't lose our connections. <...> It is impossible to develop sciences without international cooperation. We will do everything to have the international scientific community interested in cooperation with the Russian Federation," he said. Incentive for Arctic cooperation Alexey Klyuvitkin, a researcher at the Laboratory of Physico-Geological Research at the Shirshov Institute of Oceanology (the Russian Academy of Sciences), stressed the West's sanctions had affected scientific expeditions. "Every year we apply for the participation of foreign counterparts in our expeditions. <...> This year, our vessels have not received permissions to work in Icelandic waters, in Danish waters, around the Faroe Islands and off the Scottish coast of Great Britain," the expert said. Non-governmental institutions may become a significant incentive to spur scientific cooperation in the Arctic region, said Pavel Devyatkin, a researcher at the US Arctic Institute. "It is important to see how science and civil diplomacy - non-governmental institutions - can influence, which is very relevant nowadays," the expert said. International scientific cooperation is of particular importance not only for the Arctic countries. Thus, President of India's Ocean Policy Research Institute of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, Hide Sakaguchi stressed closing options for cooperation cannot have positive results. He also drew attention to future scientific cooperation at the non-governmental level. We are a non-governmental organization, we keep in touch with the Russian scientific community, he added. Cooperation of universities The Arctic exploration is impossible without an effective international scientific cooperation between universities and research centers. According to the Russian ambassador, an important direction is to increase effective cooperation within regional educational scientific institutions, in the field of scientific research. "The creation of world-class scientific and educational centers in the Russian Arctic will serve Russia's effective policy in the Arctic region," he explained. The diplomat pointed to the importance of multilateral cooperation of research centers and universities. "I would also like to suggest that we eye holding in Russia the planned UArctic congress," he added. Such an event will give an impetus to regional scientific collaboration, he continued. "Thus, we will invite universities engaged in Arctic research, and which are represented in one way or another in the Arctic. <...> We will think how to create such a platform to coordinate scientific research," he said. About forum The 12th international forum Arctic: Present and Future took place in St. Petersburg on December 8 and 9. In 2022, Russia marks the 90th anniversary of the Northern Sea Route, the 85th anniversary of the world's first drifting scientific station, North Pole-1, and the 15th anniversary of the high-latitude Arctic deep-water expedition (2007). Special activities on the forum's agenda were devoted to these events. The forum's organizer was the Association of Polar Explorers, supported by the Federation Council, the State Duma, the Ministry for Development of the Far East and Arctic, the Foreign Ministry and other authorities. Nornickel was the event's general partner. TASS was the general information partner. Read more