🧊🌐 Cooperation in the Arctic has been renowned for being largely immune to geopolitics.

Even at times of great power conflict during the Cold War, cooperation in the Arctic continued for mutually beneficial cooperation and trust-building. This era appears to have come to an end.

Over the past two decades, relations between the NATO countries and Russia have continued to deteriorate and the Arctic increasingly becomes the home of competing interests. The decision by the collective West to suspend cooperation with Russia in the Arctic Council over the war in Ukraine suggests that reliable cooperation in the Arctic has likely come to an end.

As Russia reduces reliance on NATO states and increases cooperation with non-Arctic powers in the high north, it is reasonable to expect that BRICS will become an Arctic institution.

The great economic realignment is increasingly organised with non-Western technologies, ships, insurances, investment banks and currencies. As the economic infrastructure is de-Americanised and transformed, it is reasonable to expect the institutional framework to change. This will also occur in the Arctic, Glenn Diesen @glenndiesen writes.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/room-for-cooperation-in-the-arctic/

#Asia_and_Eurasia #Arctic #Eurasia #geopolitics

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📆 ANNOUNCEMENT: On January 18 at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

In recent years, Russia has made serious efforts to strengthen its economic position in the Arctic and to create new transport and logistics systems. The Arctic region has acquired fundamental importance for the internal connectivity of the Russian economy and strengthened its export potential.

On March 3, 2022, soon after the start of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, seven member countries of the Arctic Council announced the suspension of their participation in all official events. As a result, Russia focused on the intranational goals of its chairmanship and the development of the Russian regions of the Far North.

❓What has been achieved during the Russian chairmanship of the Arctic Council?
❓What can Russia do to further develop the Arctic?
❓What will be the role of the Far North regions in the national development strategy?
❓How will NATO expansion affect the activities of the Arctic Council?
❓What are the prospects for Russia's participation in the AC and the creation of an alternative organisation with the participation of Asian states?

Participants in the discussion will try to answer these and other questions.

🎙️ Speakers:

🇳🇴 Glenn Diesen @glenndiesen, Professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway

🇷🇺 Anastasia Likhacheva, Dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Politics, Higher School of Economics

🇷🇺 Vladimir Panov, Special Representative of the Rosatom State Corporation on Arctic Development Issues

Moderator:

🗣 Timofei Bordachev, Programme Director of the Valdai Discussion Club

https://valdaiclub.com/events/announcements/valdai-club-to-discuss-russia-s-chairmanship-of-the-arctic-council/

Working languages: Russian, English.

ℹ️ Information for the media: Dear journalists, to be accredited for the event, please fill out the form on our website. If you have any questions about the event, call +79269307763. 

Links to the live broadcast of the open sessions will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VKontakte, Telegram and Dzen.

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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⏰ TODAY at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

❓What has been achieved during the Russian chairmanship of the Arctic Council?
❓What can Russia do to further develop the Arctic?
❓What will be the role of the Far North regions in the national development strategy?
❓How will NATO expansion affect the activities of the Arctic Council?
❓What are the prospects for Russia's participation in the AC and the creation of an alternative organisation with the participation of Asian states?

Participants in the discussion will try to answer these and other questions.

Links to the live broadcast of the open sessions will be posted on all online platforms of the Valdai Club: on the website, X (formerly Twitter), VKontakte, Telegram and Dzen.

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🎥 LIVE: at 12:00 noon Moscow Time (GMT+3), the Valdai Club will host an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023.

https://vk.com/video-214192832_456239158

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🧊 The End of the Arctic Consensus?

On January 18, the Valdai Club hosted an expert discussion on the results of Russia’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2021–2023. 

💬 Timofei Bordachev, the discussion moderator, emphasized that the issue of development of the Arctic region and Russia’s policy there is now of fundamental importance, since Russia has unique geographical opportunities to study and use the natural, transport and logistics resources of the Arctic.

💬 Anastasia Likhacheva, Dean of the Faculty of World Economy and International Politics, Higher School of Economics, believes that Russia should build relations with foreign partners as the main Arctic power in the world. The depth of strategic planning and development of the Arctic region in Russia is much deeper than that of other Arctic and non-Arctic states, Likhacheva noted. This does not negate possible interaction with other countries. Moreover, the basis of Russia’s state policy in the Arctic, in addition to ensuring security, provides for reliance on international cooperation in matters of economic development. However, the Arctic has now become a region of fierce international competition, and the illusions associated with the ultra-consensual approach of the Arctic Council over the past two years have been greatly devalued.

💬 Glenn Diesen @glenndiesen, Professor at the University of South-Eastern Norway, pointed out that the Arctic Council, of course, should remain in the new conditions, but its role should change. In his opinion, the development of the Arctic in the future will be associated with a reorientation of Russian policy – a departure from the idea of Greater Europe in favor of Greater Eurasia and a turn to the East as a whole. The Arctic, ceasing to be a frozen desert, is turning into a region of geostrategic tension, Diesen believes. This is due to the race for resources and control over transport routes. Against this background, Russia’s interests will lie in both finding new partners for the development of the Arctic and incentives to establish cooperation with the West in the future. The Eurasian approach to the Arctic, perhaps with the involvement of the BRICS, can resolve both of these issues, the expert believes.

💬 Vladimir Panov, Special Representative of the Rosatom State Corporation on Arctic Development Issues, outlined the situation around the “indicator of Arctic development” – the Northern Sea Route. Panov said that in 2023 a record was set for the volume of cargo and transit traffic. He indicated that there is great interest in redirecting cargo from the Suez Canal to the Northern Sea Route. This is also related to issues of ensuring the sustainability and safety of navigation. Speaking about the state of affairs in the Arctic as a whole, Panov emphasized that Russia is ahead of many countries in the field of Arctic projects for objective reasons.

https://valdaiclub.com/events/posts/articles/the-end-of-the-arctic-consensus/

#WiderEurasia #Arctic #geopolitics

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🧊 The Arctic is becoming one of the centres of international relations due to the dynamic changes taking place in the region.

The Arctic region has long been a subject of interest, primarily among the eight Arctic states — the United States of America, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Finland and Sweden. However, in recent years, non-Arctic states, primarily India and China, have increasingly been paying attention to this region.

The Arctic region is so attractive because it has significant oil and gas reserves, estimated at up to 90 billion barrels of oil and 1.7 trillion cubic meters of natural gas. These resources are becoming increasingly important as global energy demand increases. In addition to oil and gas, the Arctic also provides opportunities for infrastructure development, mining and tourism.

The region has an extensive transport network, including one of the most promising shipping routes — the Northern Sea Route, which is currently actively developing. As the Arctic ice melts, it is attracting the attention of an increasing number of international actors. As a result, the diversification of international logistics is leading to the construction of new ports and pipelines, and the region’s mineral resources, including rare earth metals and diamonds, are opening up opportunities for investment in the mining industry.

The Arctic and Eurasia are closely interconnected, since, on the one hand, the key participants in international interaction in the Arctic region historically have been countries geographically located on the Eurasian continent, and, on the other hand, the Arctic itself is of great importance for ensuring the security and well-being of the Eurasian powers, Irina Strelnikova writes.

https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/the-eurasian-aspect-of-arctic-cooperation/

#GreaterEurasia #Eurasia #Arctic

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