News

The International Arctic Forum to be Held in Murmansk

 

The International Arctic Forum Arctic—Territory of Dialogue will be held on 26 and 27 March in Murmansk. The choice of Murmansk as the venue is not accidental, as the Murmansk Region is one of the few regions fully situated in the Arctic zone and is the largest economic zone in Russia, offering a single set of tax and administrative preferences.

Murmansk port
Murmansk port / Credit: Paluba.media

I am confident that the event will unite the efforts of government authorities, international organisations, representatives of scientific and business communities from Russia and foreign countries to openly discuss the most pressing issues of sustainable growth in the Arctic region, which is especially important in the context of current geopolitical changes.

—Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation, Executive Secretary of the Organising Committee of the International Arctic Forum

The International Arctic Forum is a key platform for discussing topical issues related to the socioeconomic development of Arctic territories and multilateral mechanisms to effectively utilise the resource potential of the Arctic region.

Discussion of sustainable development issues will help to draw additional attention to the challenges and prospects that Russia faces in this region. According to officials, the discussions will include the following topics:

  • Development and implementation of advanced and innovative tools;
  • Development of the Northern Sea Route and the formation of new logistics chains;
  • Preservation of Arctic nature;
  • Support for tourism;
  • Attracting new personnel;
  • Improving state support for investment projects in the Arctic.

The previous International Arctic Forum was held in 2019 in St. Petersburg and brought together more than 3,600 representatives from Russian and international political, scientific, and business circles, the public, and leading media from 52 countries.

This year's Forum will be organised by the Roscongress Foundation.

Experts in Russia perceive the news of the forum's return positively, saying that the event will potentially attract participation from the highest level.

Murmansk has proved its 'capitalness' in the Arctic.

—Captain Arctic

However, there is also reasonable doubt about the technicalities and logistics of the venue in Murmansk. As experts say, although the city has improved over the past five years, it has not acquired suitable facilities for hosting major forums and congresses (like St. Petersburg's EXPOFORUM which hosts key events—e.g. Arctic: Today and the Future), which will likely necessitate a hybrid format with programme events distributed across the city.

Source: Paluba.media

27.01.2025