MOSCOW, October 6. /TASS/. Russia sees Norway's ongoing attempts to increase its military presence on the Spitsbergen archipelago, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a commentary on Thursday.
"We note Norway’s continuing attempts to build up its military presence on the Spitsbergen archipelago," she said.
In particular, Zakharova pointed to the Norwegian frigate Thor Heyerdahl’s entry into the port of Longyearbyen on September 21.
"As before, the visit of the Norwegian Navy’s largest warship was presented as a 'demonstration of Norway’s sovereignty' over the archipelago," she stressed. "We cannot but note an upsurge in the activity of the Norwegian Coast Guard, which is part of the Norwegian Navy, in the Spitsbergen area, including the waters of the Russian community of Barentsburg."
Zakharova recalled that on September 30, without any notification regarding the date or purpose of the visit a coast guard boat crossed the waters of Barentsburg, which "does not correspond to the practice of past years, when Russia was informed of such visits in advance."
"Obviously, under the slogan of 'showing the flag', Oslo is exerting efforts to involve Spitsbergen in the sphere of its military activity. In this connection, we would like to address the Norwegian side with a reminder about the principles and goals of the Paris Treaty of 1920, which provides for the purely peaceful status of the archipelago," Zakharova said.