The Emergency Prevention and Response in the Arctic panel conference of experts from Northern Europe, South Korea and the UN opens today in Murmansk, northern Russia.

"The forum will be attended by Arctic experts from Denmark, Norway and Finland. We also expect delegations from South Korea and the UN," the regional branch of the Emergencies Ministry said in a statement.

The Russian delegation will comprise experts from the Emergencies Ministry, the Economic Development Ministry, the Transport Ministry, the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the Federal Service for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (Roshydromet) and other agencies and departments, as well as the Murmansk Region government, regional search and rescue organizations, academics, the general public and the clergy.

The forum participants will discuss not only emergency prevention but also interdepartmental and international cooperation and environmental and radiation safety in the Arctic. They will review the Arctic emergency prevention and relief efforts of the UN Economic Commission for Europe and proposals submitted by the Arctic Council's working group on Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response in the Arctic.

One more issue on the conference agenda is volunteering as the basis for emergency response in the Arctic.

On the second day of the conference, July 19, a demonstration emergency relief exercise will be held near the Murmansk Sea Port in the Kola Bay by the regional subsystem of the Unified State System for Emergency Prevention and Response.