Sea route and energy are key to Russia's Arctic vision

Subject

Russian Arctic update.

Significance

Russia has identified two key national interests in the Arctic, hydrocarbons development and control over sea routes, and has worked consistently to advance them. Often seen as aggressive by NATO states, Russian efforts to rebuild military capabilities after decades of underfunding are in large part designed to consolidate Moscow's claim to exercise jurisdiction over its Arctic waterway and increase exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), oil and coal along it.

Impacts

• Russia's new floating nuclear power plant is the first in a series designed to assist remote communities and extractive projects.
• Warships are being used to stop and inspect small boats in a sign of Moscow's assertion of its claim to control its waters.
• Russia is part of the MOSAiC project to study the central Arctic and gain insights on climate change.