Evaluation of Russian Arctic Foreign Trade Activity

An analysis of foreign trade activity in the Russian Arctic framed by a discussion of the climatic, social, demographic, natural, etc. characteristics of the region is presented. From this point of view, the following limitations apply: the complexity of the Arctic area; the need to find technological solutions that take into account the climatic characteristics; an absence of the usual conditions for sustainable development; the limitation of ecological systems in the creation and use of technologies needed for the development of foreign trade activity. Theoretical approaches to the problem of foreign trade activity of territories are discussed alongside a proposed methodology for the analysis of foreign trade activity and an assessment of the foreign trade activity index of the Russian Arctic regions. The analysis is based on official data of Federal State Statistics Service of Russian Federation from 2000 to 2015. The results of the research showed that priorities for Russian Arctic foreign trade should be prioritised according to three groups, consisting of 1) regions with a high level of foreign trade activity; 2) regions with a low level of foreign trade activity; 3) regions with the least developed foreign trade activity. Each group requires a specific foreign trade development strategy corresponding to its characteristics.