In an interview published today, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov promised that Moscow will defend its interests in the Arctic both diplomatically and militarily, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
Russian news agencies quoted Lavrov as saying in a series of documentaries that Russia is determined to oppose the push by the US and its NATO allies to conduct more military exercises in the Arctic region.
"We see how NATO is intensifying exercises in connection with possible crises in the Arctic,", Lavrov said in a broadcast from the series entitled "Soviet Breakthrough". "Our country is fully ready to protect its interests in military, political and military-technical terms," he added.
Russian agencies have not provided additional quotes to illustrate Lavrov's claims, Reuters said.
Lavrov's comments come amid the Pentagon's new Arctic strategy, released in July, outlining what Washington described as increased Russian activity around the Arctic.
The US report said Russia had reopened hundreds of Soviet-era military sites in the Arctic and pointed to increased Russian cooperation with China on minerals and sea routes that could affect stability in the polar regions.< /p>
Shortly after the report was published, Russia's foreign ministry accused the US of stoking tensions in the Arctic and dismissed any suggestion that increased cooperation with China in the region could affect regional stability.