The Russian Ambassador to Canada assessed Russia's prospects in the Arctic without the West

Russia can resolve absolutely all issues in the Arctic region on its own, Russian Ambassador to Ottawa Oleg Stepanov told Izvestia.

We have entered thin ice: NATO is trying to block Russia's access to the Arctic

How can Moscow respond to the militarization of the North and how will it affect the entire region?

"We are the largest Arctic power capable of solving all issues in the North on our own. And Westerners, even the United States (not to mention Canada), cannot. In this sense, it is much more useful to involve friendly countries that show mutual interest and have the necessary potential for joint mutually beneficial exploration of high latitudes," the diplomat said.

Russia has more than 24.5 thousand km of the Arctic coast, and also has the world's largest icebreaking group. There are large reserves of oil, gas and rare earths on the Russian continental shelf. This gives the Russian North a strategic importance. According to experts interviewed by Izvestia, possible cooperation with friendly states here is mainly focused on energy and transport logistics.