MURMANSK, March 27. /TASS/. The NATO Nordic Response 24 exercises, which took place last year from March 4 to March 15 in the northern regions of Norway, Sweden and Finland, were clearly provocative and anti-Russian, said Anton Kobyakov, Advisor to the president, executive secretary of the organizing committee for preparation and holding of the International Arctic Forum.
"The March 2024 exercises were the largest since the end of the Cold War and were demonstratively provocative and anti-Russian in nature. As we can see now, the EU is planning to jumpstart its economy through the military-industrial complex - it is necessary to take this threat seriously," he said.
According to Kobyakov, the Arctic Strategy adopted by the US Department of Defense in 2024 describes the Arctic as a zone of strategic competition.
"Under the slogans of the Russian threat in the Arctic, the NATO countries are openly increasing their military activity. So, in 2024, about 20,000 NATO members from 13 countries took part in the exercises of the Nordic Response alliance, and they are rapidly bringing their military infrastructure closer to our borders. Deep militarization of Northern Europe, in particular Norway, has been initiated under the slogans of alleged security threats from Russia. <...> Currently, a network of eight radar stations is being deployed throughout Norway, which has been dubbed the ‘eyes of NATO in the North’, and which should expand the alliance's capabilities in continuous surveillance of airspace," he added.
The sixth International Arctic Forum titled The Arctic - the Territory of Dialogue (IAF) is being held in the Murmansk Region for the first time. It lasts from March 26-27. The forum serves as a key platform for discussing the socio-economic development of Arctic territories, establishing multilateral cooperation mechanisms, and exploring the vast resource potential of the region. One of the central topics is the development of the Northern Sea Route, marking 500 years since its exploration.