A New Vector of the Arctic Tourism and the EU and the US Sanctions Against Russia

Tourism in the Arctic not only carries the mission of socio-economic development but also is a reflection of the geopolitical presence. The European Union intends to carry out a comprehensive expansion of its influence in the North and demonstrates a desire to interfere in the state affairs of the circumpolar countries (restrictions on the sovereign rights of the Arctic countries to extract natural resources, set out in the Joint communication dated October 13, 2021). The main goal of this policy is destabilisation and deterioration of the economic condition of Russia as the largest polar power, including through an active sanctions policy. A powerful array of sanctions against Russia in the first quarter of 2022, related to the special military operation by the Russian Federation to protect Donbas, affected both Russian tourism in the Arctic regions of the country and, in general, the organisation of international travel in northern latitudes. At the same time, the active development of domestic tourism in the Russian Arctic can become one of the pillars of stabilising the country's socio-economic development. Tourism and related sectors of the economy can be used as tools to reduce the conflict potential of development in the North. A new concept "Arctification" is introduced and interpreted.