Commentary
Olga Bouch: Murmansk strengthens its position as the key western hub of the Northern Sea Route
The ice-free port confirms its role as the western «gateway» to the Northern Sea Route, moving from isolated pilot voyages to regular export-import links with China During the spring-summer navigation season of 2026, the Murmansk assets of the Port Alliance group – the Murmansk Commercial Seaport and the Murmansk Bulk Terminal – handled 1,020 thousand...
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Mikhail Grigoriev Tells BRICS Lab Participants About the Economics of Arctic Shipping
An expert from IMEMO RAS and the Gekon company spoke to students at the PORA venue On October 28, 2026, the Expert Center «Project Office for Arctic Development» (PORA) hosted a lecture by Mikhail Grigoriev, Director of the consulting company Gekon and a leading research fellow at IMEMO RAS, for students participating in the BRICS...
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Irina Strelnikova – on Japan’s motivation in the Arctic
The country is looking toward the Far North, striving to ensure energy security, driven by logistical interest in using the Northern Sea Route, and showing scientific attention to climate and bioresources Japan has built an icebreaker for researching the Arctic Ocean. As early as December 2026, the first research icebreaker Mirai II, intended for specialized...
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Andrey Trenin: «US Expansion into the Rare-Earth Industry Exceeds Russia’s by Almost 300 Times»
The United States is rapidly building its own integrated industry virtually from scratch, while Russia’s development of its rare-earth industry is, at best, a moderately paced effort to catch up The temporary extension of the US–China trade truce has postponed, but not resolved, the conflict over rare-earth metals, advanced technologies, and control of critical supply...
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Ekaterina Serova. Not Just Bases: How the US Is Cementing Its Presence in Greenland
The agreement between the US, Denmark, and the Greenlandic authorities should be seen as a transition from the model of American presence on an ally’s territory to a special regime of shared use and governance of the territory On September 22, 2026, on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York, the US,...
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Alexey Tsykarev: Russia can offer BRICS expertise in institutional support for indigenous small-numbered peoples
At the same time, BRICS itself can compete with Western institutions in the field of standards on indigenous peoples’ rights Against the backdrop of continued stagnation in the activities of the Arctic Council, which recently marked its thirtieth anniversary, cooperation among BRICS countries in the northern latitudes is acquiring additional value. Economic cooperation in the...
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Maria Lagutina: The European Arctic Summit in Rovaniemi and the Formation of a New EU Arctic Strategy
A securitization of European Arctic policy is taking place; whereas previously it was built around issues of climate change, sustainable development, scientific cooperation, and environmental protection, today security issues are increasingly coming to the fore On September 13–14, 2026, an informal Arctic Summit of European Union countries was held in Rovaniemi, Finland. The meeting was...
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Andrey Krivorotov – on the limited results of the European Arctic Summit
The event turned into yet another “meeting of the willing”, who are united above all by a sharply critical attitude toward Russia In the capital of the Finnish Arctic, the city of Rovaniemi, the European Arctic Summit took place on September 13–14, concluding with the adoption of a joint statement. The course and results of...
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