Russia, US To Eventually Start Discussing Military Aspects Of Arctic - Russian Official

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th September, 2021) Russia and the United States are interested in cooperation and predictability in the Arctic and will eventually start discussing military and political aspects of the situation in the region even if they have some disagreement over it at the moment, Nikolai Korchunov, a senior official of the Arctic Council, told Sputnik.

The US embassy in Moscow said on Saturday that the US and Russia cooperated on issues that were of interest to both countries in the Arctic, adding that this cooperation helped keep the region free of conflict.

"There is a mutual interest in this region developing in a predictable manner, in it being the area of constructive joint work and minimal tensions � US officials have remarked on that, too � in the cooperation developing within the Arctic Council.

The positions differ somewhat now when it comes to military and political aspects, but these issues will also be on the agenda of the Russian-US dialogue and cooperation in the Arctic sooner or later," Korchunov, who serves also as the ambassador-at-large of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said.

The Arctic council, which was set up in 1996, brings together Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia,� Sweden, and the United States. Countries take turns to hold a two-year chair position. Russia's chairmanship of the organization began on May 20.