The XI International Forum «The Arctic: Today and the Future»
was held in St. Petersburg

The largest Arctic business program in Russia was presented at the event

The business program of the XI International Forum «The Arctic: Today and the Future» - one of the central annual events on the Arctic agenda in Russia - has ended in St. Petersburg. The program included 2 plenary sessions, 52 discussion platforms, dedicated to the goals and main directions of public and social policy of the Russian Federation in the Arctic, economy, infrastructure, science and technology, environment, international cooperation, integrated security of the Arctic region and the development of creative industries. The results of Russia's chairmanship of the Arctic Council for 2021 were summarized. More than 400 speakers spoke at the sessions. The event was attended by over 2,500 delegates from 40 regions of Russia, both in person and remotely.

The Forum was opened by Artur Chilingarov, President of the Association of Polar Explorers, Special Representative of the President of Russia for International Cooperation in the Arctic and Antarctic. «Look, how many people came to work at the Forum today! Such attention shows great public interest in Russia and abroad in the Arctic agenda. This is especially important, given Russia's chairmanship of the Arctic Council — there is a lot of attention to our country today. We know how to work and we are able to attract foreign partners to joint activities », - he said.

Alexei Chekunkov, Minister of the Russian Federation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, presented the first results of work aimed at the socio-economic development of the Arctic zone. «Since 2020, 338 projects have been implemented in the Arctic with a total cost of 1.1 trillion rubles of investments and 94 billion rubles of state support, which allows creating 28 thousand jobs», - said Alexei Chekunkov. He also drew attention to the problem of preparing a separate federal bill on "Northern Transportation".

Irina Yarovaya, Deputy Chairman of the State Duma, announced the readiness of the State Duma to legally support the development of the Arctic. She also suggested that the line ministry and the business community unite with the parliament to work together to create a new impetus for Arctic activities.

Vyacheslav Ruksha, Deputy Director General – Director for the Northern Sea Route Directorate, State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, stated that without additional construction of the sixth and seventh icebreakers of project 22220 it is impossible to provide year-round navigation along the Northern Sea Route: «With five 22220 icebreakers, navigation could be increased from eight months to nine months. But without additional two icebreakers, year-round navigation, safe and uninterrupted, cannot be achieved».

The head of St. Petersburg Alexander Beglov addressed the participants of the Forum. He spoke about the city's readiness to take part in the implementation of Arctic projects. The Deputy Head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Alexey Besprozvannykh spoke about the products of Russian companies that specialize in the production of clothing and equipment for the Arctic. The head of the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources Svetlana Radionova urged the Arctic enterprises not to allow violations and not to wait for the attention of the Federal Service for Supervision of Natural Resources.

Separate events dedicated to the 25th anniversary of the Arctic Council were attended by representatives of diplomatic missions of 15 foreign countries. Speakers noted the Arctic Council's special role in organizing effective international dialogue and fruitful cooperation for the benefit of the Arctic.

A number of agreements were signed during the Forum. In particular, Alexei Chekunov, Minister of the Russian Far East and Arctic Development and Alexander Tsybulsky Governor of the Arkhangelsk region, signed an agreement to establish and develop the Federal Center for Arctic Medicine in Arkhangelsk. Norilsk Nickel and the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic signed an agreement on cooperation in the implementation of investment projects in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, the Trans-Baikal Territory and the Murmansk Region.

The Polar Foundation presented the preliminary results of the study of the ecosystem of the Norilsk industrial region. This is a specially organized expedition to study the level of pollution after the diesel fuel spill in May 2020.

The exposition platform of the XI International Forum «Arctic: Today and the Future» presented a large-scale exhibition of solutions for the modern Arctic: products and services for infrastructure development and construction, transport support, shipbuilding, the financial sector, digital technologies, equipment, for field development and operation, communications, research, education and health.

The result of the Forum will be a resolution that traditionally accumulates the initiatives of the participants and will be sent to the relevant authorities to improve legislation and state regulation in the field of sustainable development of the Arctic.

The Forum was held with the support and participation of both Chambers of the Federal Assembly and the Government. The organizer is the Association of Polar Explorers.

The Forum was supported by PJSC MMC Norilsk Nickel as General Partner, NOVATEK as Partner, Russian Railways (JSCo “RZD”) and PTC KAMAZ as Section Partners. RIA Novosti and TASS Russian News Agency became General Information Partners; Arctic.ru acted as Strategic Information Partner. The Polar Foundation was a Special Partner of the Forum.

The Forum was sponsored by JSC VTB Bank.