According to Foreign Ministry Ambassador-at-Large Nikolai Korchunov, Moscow is concerned about the “internationalization of the alliance's military activities” in the region, which involves non-Arctic states, which poses a security threat
Ambassador at Large of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Chairman of the Committee senior officials of the Arctic Council, Nikolai Korchunov did not rule out the risk of unintentional incidents in the Arctic due to NATO actions. He told TASS about this.
“The internationalization of the alliance’s military activities in high latitudes, in which non-Arctic NATO states are involved, cannot but cause concern. In this regard, there are risks of unintentional incidents, which, in addition to security risks, can also cause serious damage to the fragile Arctic ecosystem,— says Korchunov.
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Speaking about the activity of NATO countries in the Arctic region, the diplomat recalled the past military exercises in Norway, which, according to Moscow, “do not contribute to ensuring security in the region.” In March & April, the planned Cold Response 2022 exercises took place, in which about 30 thousand military personnel from 27 countries participated, including NATO partners Finland and Sweden (after the start of the Russian military operation in Ukraine, these countries thought about joining the union), as well as about 220 aircraft and more than 50 ships.
Five countries have direct access to the Arctic Ocean: Russia, Canada, the USA, Norway and Denmark. Iceland, Sweden and Finland, although they do not have oceanic borders with the Arctic, consider themselves subarctic states.
According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic contains about 22% of the world's undiscovered hydrocarbon resources: oil, gas, and gas condensate. In addition, there is uranium, gold, diamonds and rare earth metals.
In May last year, NATO announced the buildup of Russia's military power in the Arctic. In response, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Moscow's military activity in this region does not pose a security threat to other states, and the restoration of military infrastructure was explained by ensuring the country's defense capability. At that time, a strategic plan for the development of the Arctic region until 2030 was adopted in Reykjavik. The countries of the Arctic Council (Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States) have committed to ensuring that the Arctic remains “a region of peace, stability and constructive cooperation, a dynamic, prosperous, sustainable and secure home for all its inhabitants , including indigenous peoples, where their rights and well-being are respected.
Read on RBC Pro Pro “Now Russia is Crimea”: the experience of business development under tough sanctions Forecasts Pro IT companies on suitcases. Will support measures help stop their departure? what companies should pay attention to after March 2022 about “attempts to include the Arctic in the zone of military planning and responsibility of NATO, turning the region into a theater of military operations of the alliance”, the consequence of which “is the weakening of regional security, the growth of conflict and security risks”. Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Mikhail Popov said that the United States wants to challenge Russia's rights in the Arctic in order to gain access to the resources of the region and the Northern Sea Route, and also plans to deploy guided missile destroyers in the Barents Sea, build three new heavy icebreakers by 2027, Washington's goal, he said, — the creation of the “Arctic division”.
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