On Friday, February 6, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha participated in an extraordinary meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.

During the meeting, the Cabinet of Ministers adopted the Decree "On the Approval of the Strategy for Securing National Interests and Developing Ukraine's Activities in Antarctica, the Arctic, and the World Ocean for 2026-2035 and the Approval of the Operational Action Plan for the Implementation of the Said Strategy for 2026-2028".

The MFA's initiative to develop and adopt the Strategy was supported by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyyand was made possible through active cooperation with relevant ministries and agencies, including the National Antarctic Scientific Center. The Minister expressed his gratitude to First Vice Prime Minister – Minister of Economy Yuliia Svyrydenko and government colleagues for supporting the initiative.

"It is symbolic that it was adopted on this specific date. Exactly 30 years ago, on February 6, 1996, the flag of Ukraine was first officially raised over the Akademik Vernadsky Antarctic station, which Ukraine received from Great Britain. It was then that Ukraine joined the circle of some thirty nations that have a presence on the Antarctic continent and corresponding scientific research capabilities," the Head of the MFA noted.

According to Andrii Sybiha, the adoption of the Strategy on the 30th anniversary of the official opening of the Akademik Vernadsky station underscores the global role of our state, which actively operates in polar regions and contributes to the development of science, climate research, biology, and geophysics.

"The systematic presence of our state in the regions of Antarctica, the Arctic, and the World Ocean is of significant strategic and geopolitical importance. It creates additional foreign policy tools, strengthens Ukraine's national security, bolsters our state's position on the world stage, and contributes to countering the aggressive policy of the Russian Federation in these regions," the Minister stated.

Andrii Sybiha emphasized that implementing the tasks outlined in the Strategy for the next ten years will allow Ukraine to strengthen its position in Antarctica and commence active operations in the Arctic. The adoption of a dedicated strategic document places Ukraine alongside countries that have recently adopted and are implementing similar polar strategies, such as Poland, Germany, France, and the Netherlands. The Strategy will also facilitate the development of living resources of the World Ocean and metallic nodule deposits on the seabed in the long term.

"Such steps demonstrate our maturity as a state that 'plays the long game' in strategic regions and directions. Such consistency, prudence, and long-term focus in foreign policy are critically important both for countering the aggressor and for protecting Ukraine's strategic national interests in the long run," the Foreign Minister emphasized.