MOSCOW, February 19. /TASS/. Moscow does not seek to infringe on anyone’s interests in the Arctic but will not give up what belongs to Russia, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated.
"We need to focus on the work in front of us rather than take offense, as that’s unproductive. We don’t seek to harm anyone but we will not give up what’s ours," he said, addressing the Russian State Duma (lower house of parliament).
"We are the largest Arctic power and we have the longest coastline in the region, as well as the most developed infrastructure, which includes the Northern Sea Route, something our Arctic Council partners eye with envy. All this puts us in a strong position to promote our interests," Lavrov went on to say.
The minister pointed out that Russian President Vladimir Putin and the country’s government view developing infrastructure in the Arctic as a priority. "As for the Arctic Council, no one kicked us out. It’s impossible to do. <...> I think the most important thing is to do our job, advance and implement our plans, and let others see that in fact, we are capable of developing our territory and waters - both territorial waters and the shelf - on our own," he stressed.
"We have a very strong position [in the Arctic Council], one which is backed by agreements regulating our relations with almost all of our neighbors," Lavrov noted. "We need to do our job so that our partners in the Arctic Council have no choice but to resume normal cooperation," he concluded.