On 17 June 2025, a high-level meeting was held aboard the Swedish icebreaker Oden in Helsingborg, attended by Her Royal Highness Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Swedish Minister of Education Johan Pehrson, representatives from the Swedish Arctic Embassy, NORDUnet, the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat, and the European Commission.
The overarching objective for the meeting was to build further political momentum for the Swedish government backing for the construction of a new state-of-the-art icebreaker capable of operating in the High Arctic – a vital asset to support sustainable arctic research, digital infrastructure, and strategic autonomy in the polar regions.
A state-of-the-art icebreaker is essential to the success of Polar Connect. It will allow a route through the Polar ice cap to be pursued, and together with the Oden icebreaker makea subsea cable build operation under the sea ice in the High Arctic possible. The proposed icebreaker is planned to be equipped to allow cable maintenance and repairs.
The meeting underscored the close alignment between Sweden’s Arctic strategy and broader Arctic ambitions, and the realisation of the Polar Connect vision — connecting science, infrastructure, and geopolitics at the top of the world.
Read more about the event at the Swedish Research Council
