On Friday, February 6, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha participated in an extraordinary meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. According to the Minister, during the meeting, the government approved the Strategy for Ensuring National Interests and Developing Ukraine’s Activities in Antarctica, the Arctic, and the World Ocean for 2026-2035, as well as the Operational Plan of Measures for its implementation for 2026-2028. This was reported by Bukvy, reports the PromPolitInform portal.
“It is symbolic that it was adopted on this date. Exactly 30 years ago, on February 6, 1996, the Ukrainian flag was officially raised for the first time over the Academician Vernadsky Antarctic Station, which Ukraine received from the United Kingdom. It was then that Ukraine joined the circle of three dozen countries with a presence on the Antarctic continent and corresponding scientific research capabilities,” Sybiha noted. The Minister emphasized that the adoption of the Strategy on the 30th anniversary of the opening of the Ukrainian Antarctic station confirms Ukraine’s global role in the polar regions and its contribution to the development of science, climate research, biology, and geophysics.
According to Sybiha, Ukraine’s systemic presence in Antarctica, the Arctic, and the World Ocean is of significant strategic and geopolitical significance.
“It creates additional foreign policy instruments, strengthens Ukraine’s national security, enhances our state’s position on the global stage, and helps counter Russia’s aggressive policies in these regions,” he said.
The Foreign Minister noted that the implementation of the Strategy for the next ten years will strengthen Ukraine’s position in Antarctica and enable active work in the Arctic. With the adoption of this document, Ukraine joins countries that have recently developed and are implementing their polar strategies, including Poland, Germany, France, and the Netherlands.
“Such steps demonstrate our maturity as a state that plays a long-term role in strategic regions and areas.” “Such consistency, thoughtfulness, and long-term foreign policy are critically important both for countering the aggressor and for protecting Ukraine’s strategic national interests in the long term,” the minister emphasized.
February 6 marks 30 years since Great Britain handed over the Faraday Antarctic research station, later known as the Academician Vernadsky Station, to Ukraine. To mark this anniversary, Ukrposhta is releasing a special postage set dedicated to Ukraine’s presence in Antarctica.
Meteorologist Anzhelika Ganchuk will lead the 31st Ukrainian Antarctic Expedition for the 2026-2027 season. This marks the first time in the history of Ukrainian Antarctic research that a woman will lead a year-long mission at the Academician Vernadsky Station.
