MOSCOW, March 6. /TASS/. Key topics of the upcoming Arctic: Territory of Dialogue forum, due in St. Petersburg on April 9-10, will be Costal Territories, Open Ocean and Sustainable Development, the event’s organizer, Roscongress, said in a press release on Tuesday.
"The business program for the International Arctic Forum 2019 includes a wide range of events. Together, they cover every key topic which requires careful attention in order to make a breakthrough in achieving regional development in the Arctic. The programme includes sessions on increasing international economic cooperation, modernizing key industrial enterprises, social issues, and environment and climate protection," the press service quoted Advisor to the Russian President Anton Kobyakov as saying.
The Coastal Territories pillar includes a series of sessions, panel discussions, and roundtables focusing on projects to increase living and working conditions in the Russian Arctic, improve underlying economic mechanisms, and identify innovative solutions to modernize industrial enterprises underpinning development in the Arctic.
"The Open Ocean pillar will focus on the economic issues underpinning regional development in the Russian Arctic, and will be of significant interest to investors from the world’s leading countries. It will encompass sessions on the Northern Sea Route as the key to the development of the Russian Arctic; achievements and innovation in shipbuilding; bio resources of the open ocean and the Arctic fishing industry; production and use of liquefied natural gas (LNG); transport connectivity for the Arctic, Far East, Siberia, and the Urals; the potential and risks of Arctic shelf development; and developing port infrastructure in the North," the press release reads.
The Sustainable Development pillar will encompass events examining social development in the Arctic. It will cover the most crucial aspects related to supporting and realizing human potential, and improving infrastructure for people living and working in the Russian Arctic, the event organizer said.
The International Arctic Forum - Arctic: Territory of Dialogue - is a key platform for discussing the Arctic region’s problems and development at the international level. The event was organized for the first time in 2010. The 5th ‘Arctic: Territory of Dialogue’ International Arctic Forum will take place in St. Petersburg on April 9-10, 2019.