The Arctic Council is preparing to resume the activities of its working groups in a virtual format, said the secretariat of this international organization, designed to promote cooperation in the field of environmental protection and sustainable development of subarctic regions.
"In February, eight Arctic states, in consultation with organizations representing indigenous peoples, reached a consensus on the gradual resumption of official meetings of working groups in a virtual format," the council said in a press release.
In addition to Russia, the Arctic Council includes seven Western countries: Denmark, Iceland, Canada, Norway, USA, Finland and Sweden. There has virtually been no activity in the six working groups of the council since Russian invasion into Ukraine in March 2022.
The council gradually began to restore its work from May 2023, when the chairmanship passed from Russia to Norway. Last August, the members of the Arctic Council decided to communicate with each other "through written procedures," that is, by e-mail.
Now they will also communicate via video calls.
"We consider this as evidence of the increased interest of partners in strengthening the role of the Arctic Council, understanding the need to take into account the views and interests of indigenous peoples who are permanent members of the organization, and realizing that the inaction of the organization is fraught with its disappearance," said Nikolai Korchunov, Ambassador-at-Large of the Russian Foreign Ministry, as cited by the Kommersant newspaper.
Meetings of senior level diplomats responsible for the Arctic from eight countries have been suspended since March 2022 until the Arctic states reach a consensus on their resumption.
In February, Russian authorities decided to suspend annual contributions amounting to around $100,000 to the Arctic Council secretariat.
Moscow is ready to reconsider its decision if the Western member states of the organization resume full-scale cooperation with the Russian Federation.
Alex Shishlo for Rough&Polished
