Русский
Russia has partially resumed its work in the Arctic Council, according to Maria Zakharova, of the Russian Foreign Ministry, who has confirmed that “Cooperation through the Arctic Council has been partially resumed.” The Council, which includes Russia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the United States, suspended its operations in March 2022 when Russia held the rotating Presidency.
Zakharova said that in the second half of 2024, at Norway’s request, meetings of all council working groups were held via video-link amongst all members, including discussions on sustainable development, climate, environmental protection, and emergency prevention and response. She said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expects that the work of the Arctic Council will fully resume, taking into account the interests of all states in the region.
The Arctic Council was established in 1996. It is a high-level intergovernmental forum for the development of international cooperation in high latitudes.
The surrounding six Arctic states that border the Arctic Ocean—Canada, Denmark (with Greenland), Iceland, Norway, Russia, and the United States each possess a 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mile) Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) off their coasts. Two Arctic states (Finland and Sweden) do not have direct access to the Arctic Ocean. There are some territorial disputes.
Russia has the longest coastline along the Arctic Ocean, covering more than 53% of the total, as well as its largest population, with almost half of the world’s Arctic population being Russian.
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