China attaches great significance to the Arctic, and Beijing has a wide range of interests, including scientific research, biodiversity preservation, efforts to combat climate change, and the construction of transport and logistics infrastructure, Russian Ambassador to China Igor Morgulov told Russia’s Sputnik news agency.

“Bilateral cooperation is growing stronger year after year and encompasses a wide range of areas, including science and technology exchanges, tourism, etc. In 2017, a working group on Arctic cooperation was established for enhancing cooperation in this sphere. Last year, the heads of both states adopted a joint statement on international relations in a new era. The document focused on the need to deepen Arctic cooperation and to jointly develop various routes in the northern latitudes. Russia is interested in expanding the region’s potential by introducing innovative and efficient technologies. In this context, we praise the involvement of non-regional players in this work, and, of course, we praise the involvement of our strategic partner China in implementing Arctic projects,” Morgulov noted in his interview.

He added that the Russian side was looking forward to resuming tourist exchanges and contacts in the field of Arctic research, in light of lifting Covid-19 restrictions. It considers efforts to monitor the Arctic climate and to study the local animal and plant kingdoms within the framework of the Arctic Council’s working group to be promising aspects of joint scientific research.