New Z-elite: From the battlefields in Ukraine to the North Pole

Rosatomflot reported that the nuclear icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy has once again set off on a voyage to the North Pole. Before departure, a banner with the inscription "Time of Heroes at the North Pole" was flagged on the site of the giant vessel. In itself an indication that this is not a typical commercial tourist tour, which the Murmansk-based icebreaker fleet have organised every summer since the early 1990ties.

As stated on the company's website, this time on board are participants of the "Time of Heroes" programme — a personnel initiative launched on the orders of Vladimir Putin. Its official goal is to prepare management personnel for state and municipal bodies, state companies, and strategic projects, "forming a personnel reserve — the future elite of Russia." 

The programme includes people with combat experience gained during the war against Ukraine.

This is the second year in a row a nuclear icebreaker brings soldiers from the war to the North Pole. 

Last year, 83 people went on the polar cruise, this year — 85. As recounted the rector of the Presidential Academy, Alexey Komissarov, during the first journey “participants attended lectures and master classes on state management, production management, team building, public speaking, and other topics”. However, he did not explain why such events required being held at the North Pole.

This summer, the cost of a regular tourist cruise on the icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy starts from 3 million 82 thousand roubles. Thus, on a similar voyage with 85 passengers, Rosatomflot could earn more than 262 million roubles. However, as noted by the publication Arctic Observer, the corporation will still receive this money, albeit from the state budget. In other words, the sea cruise for 85 people is effectively paid for by taxpayers.

The symbolic part of the journey deserves special attention. One of the main events of the voyage was the lighting of the Eternal Flame at the North Pole by participants of the war in Ukraine in honour of the 80th anniversary of Victory. With this, Russian authorities continue to link the memory of World War II with the current war in Ukraine.

The "Time of Heroes" programme was initially met with scepticism by many experts regarding the preparation of a personnel reserve. For instance, the publication "Verstka" wrote that its main task is not to fill management vacancies, but to promote contract service, with participants being assigned positions with a visible role but without political influence: "A real leader with a background in the special military operation is not needed by anyone."

Nevertheless, against the backdrop of Russia's new ten-year rearmament programme, recently announced by Putin, which clearly points to the further militarisation of the country, it becomes evident that "Time of Heroes" may play a different, strategic role — the formation in the coming years of a managerial layer with a combat past, loyal and integrated into the structure of a militarised state.

There is also another symbolic moment. During the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Vladimir Putin stated: "Where the foot of a Russian soldier steps, it is ours." Physically stepping onto the North Pole is not easy — it is covered with drifting Arctic ice, beneath which lies an ocean more than 4,000 metres deep. Nevertheless, the presence of participants in military actions in Ukraine at the geographical top of the planet can be perceived as a gesture emphasising Russia's desire to strengthen its presence in this region.