Joint Russian-Indian cooperation to develop the Arctic project

Russia is exploring ways to cooperate with India to achieve a joint project in the Arctic, which can be compared in scientific importance to the International Space Station.

This was stated by the Director of the Russian Institute for Arctic and Antarctic Research, Alexander Makarov, following his visit to the city of Vasco da Gama in the state of Goa, where he held negotiations with representatives of the Indian National Center for Polar and Oceanic Research.

Makarov said: “Russia is successfully developing a powerful research project in the Arctic in the form of the “Arctic” expedition that was deployed directly on the ice of the Arctic Ocean. Scientists work with the support of a unique ship, an ice-resistant marine platform, containing the latest devices and equipment. and techniques for scientific research at high latitudes.” He added, "We invited our Indian colleagues to join the research, and they were very interested in this matter."

He continued: "In the near future, a series of working meetings will begin with representatives of Indian scientific institutions, where potential directions and topics for studying the natural environment of the Arctic region will be discussed."

He pointed out, "If we look at most of the major projects, such as the International Space Station or the Large Hadron Collider, we will find that they are all international, and a similar experiment can be implemented in the Arctic with the participation of our colleagues from India."

Alexander Makarov recalled that Russia and India are developing fruitful cooperation in Antarctica, helping each other for a long time under the signed agreement that can be expanded. According to the Russian researcher, Indian scientists have been conducting scientific research in the Arctic for a long time, but they are very interested in the opportunity to work with Russia in this region.

He explained that the interest of Indian scientists in the Arctic has increased significantly in recent times, as climate change in high latitudes affects the entire planet. Changes in the atmospheric circulation in the Arctic also affect the monsoon system in India, which has serious consequences for agriculture. The scientist pointed out that the intensity of the monsoon winds and the appearance of heat waves negatively affect India.