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Top brass sees possibility of US warships provocatively entering Northern Sea Route

Igor Kostyukov noted that NATO was stepping up its military activities in the Arctic region

MOSCOW, May 17. /TASS/. Warships of the United States and other NATO countries may resort to provocative actions by entering the Northern Sea Route waters without coordinating their journey with Russia first, said Igor Kostyukov, the chief of the Main Directorate of the Russian Armed Forces’ General Staff.

"It is possible that, in the future, Washington may try to organize an entry by warships of the US Navy and other countries into the Northern Sea Route waters without coordinating it with Russia," he said in an article for the Russian Defense Ministry’s ‘Military Thought’ journal, headlined "NATO as the main source of military threats for Russia."

In his opinion, in order to shape the public opinion ahead of this possible provocative act, the US media have started to circulate opinions calling for measures to demonstrate "how baseless Moscow’s claims for receiving exclusive rights in the Arctic Region are."

The Russian military official went on to say that NATO countries regularly resort to provocative actions, aimed at contesting the Northern Sea Route’s status, including the passage of the US Coast Guard's Healy icebreaker along the Northern Sea Route shipping lane in September 2023. The goal was to study Russia’s response, he said.

Kostyukov added that NATO was stepping up its military activities in the Arctic region.

"The US and its allies are driven by the desire to embroil Russia into a geopolitical confrontation, aimed at preventing Russia from obtaining leadership positions in polar regions, and to ensure unhindered access to resources and transportation routes in the region," the article says.

In this regard, the alliance’s efforts are focused on conducting drills and exercises, aimed at practicing long-range high-precision strikes on targets in Russia. The allies are also boosting their air and missile defense capabilities and engage in situation monitoring and preparations for deployment of joint coalition force groupings in polar areas.

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