Northern Forum Goodwill Ambassador Maria Lagutina took part in the round table "India–Russia: Strategic Arctic Dialogue," held on March 24, 2026, in St. Petersburg.
Northern Forum Goodwill Ambassador Maria Lagutina took part in the round table "India–Russia: Strategic Arctic Dialogue," held on March 24, 2026, in St. Petersburg.
The event was organized by the Consulate General of India in St. Petersburg jointly with the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI) and was dedicated to discussing the prospects for bilateral cooperation between Russia and India in the Arctic.
During the session "Cooperation in International Organizations: The Potential of Russia and India in Multilateral Formats," Maria Lagutina delivered a report on the topic "India's Place in Multilateral Cooperation in the Arctic and the Arctic Governance System," in which she examined India's position within the Arctic governance system, as well as the prospects for Russia-India interaction in various multilateral cooperation formats in the Arctic. Special attention was paid to the potential of cooperation formats such as BRICS and the Northern Forum.
In her speech, highlighting the potential of the Northern Forum as a platform for subnational interaction between Russia and India, Maria Lagutina identified the following additional opportunities for cooperation:
- Involvement of individual Indian states in international cooperation on the Arctic agenda;
- Development of direct contacts with the northern regions of Russia and other countries;
- Participation in sustainable development projects, climate adaptation, and infrastructure solutions.
It was particularly noted that the Northern Forum is the least susceptible to sanctions pressure and politicization among regional governance institutions in the Arctic, making it a convenient tool for maintaining and expanding contacts amidst restrictions at the interstate level.
In conclusion, it was also noted that "unlike more formalized structures, BRICS and the Northern Forum allow non-Arctic states to pursue their interests in the region without the need for an institutional upgrade of status, for example, to the level of a full member of the Arctic Council. This is especially important for India, whose strategy combines the pursuit of strengthening its global status with a cautious approach to institutional expansion."
