“We should have all options for foreign policy maneuvering, including the withdrawal from the Arctic Council if its activities do not meet Russia’s interests,” Korchunov told Sputnik on Tuesday.

The diplomat pointed out that the Council is “functioning at its lowest capacity, that is, it would practically not work.”

Established in 1996, the Arctic Council consists of eight Arctic States: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States.

Thirteen non-Arctic States (China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, South Korea, and the United Kingdom) have observer’s status in the regional body.

While Russia held the pro tempore presidency of the Arctic Council in March 2022, the other members suspended their participation in all official events to protest against the armed conflict in Ukraine.

Norway took over the leadership of the Arctic Council in May 2023 for two years.

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