Russia’s Rosatom calls for creation of new arctic platform

There is a need to create a new platform to address logistical and infrastructure issues in northern latitudes, which would replace the current Arctic Council, Alexey Likhachev, Rosatom CEO, has stated.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF), he said the current Arctic Council was non-viable, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

“There is a need to create a new platform for organising joint solutions on logistical and infrastructure issues in northern latitudes,” he noted.

He stressed that there are at least two reasons for the Arctic Council’s “non-viability.”

“Apart from Russia, all member countries are NATO members, and it is clear what they are doing there now. The second point is that it does not provide any opportunities for non-regional countries—countries that are not located, roughly speaking, on the edges of the Arctic transport corridor—to participate. This sharply narrows interest,” he added.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov