Norway is holding "constructive" talks with Russia over the transfer of the Arctic Council chairmanship set to take place in May, Senior Arctic Official of the Norwegian Foreign Ministry Morten Hoglund said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 28th March, 2023) Norway is holding "constructive" talks with Russia over the transfer of the Arctic Council chairmanship set to take place in May, Senior Arctic Official of the Norwegian Foreign Ministry Morten Hoglund said on Tuesday.
"We are, I would say, in a constructive process with the Russian chair regarding the preparation for the meeting (on the transfer of the chairmanship)," Hoglund told reporters, according to High North news.
There will be a virtual meeting regarding the transfer, the official noted, adding that it was unlikely that any ministers would participate in it.
Hoglund said Norway's main goal for the two-year chairmanship will be to ensure that the Arctic Council survives as an international forum and its members resume all contacts for all types of activities.
The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental forum that addresses challenges faced by the nations and indigenous peoples of the region. There are eight members of the council � Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States. In March 2022, after the beginning of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, all members of the council aside from Russia announced that they would not participate in the meetings held under the Russian chairmanship. In June, the seven countries agreed to partially renew their participation in the projects Russia is not involved in.
