Russia will not ban Western countries from using the Northern sea route, Russian Minister of Far East and Arctic Development Alexey Chekunkov shared in an interview with Izvestia newspaper.
According to Mr. Chekunkov, the unstable situation in the Middle East may increase the volume of goods transported through the Northern Maritime Route. For example, China is planning to increase the volume of goods transiting through this route to 20 million tons by 2030.
Experts believe that the US and Europe may also be interested in transporting energy and raw materials through this maritime corridor.
Meanwhile, Russia is planning to build 10 new nuclear-powered icebreakers and deploy a space system to serve the development of the Northern sea route.
In the long term, Europe and the US can consider the Northern Sea Route as an alternative transport route, shortening part of the transportation time between Asia and Europe or North America, according to Mr. Pavel Anisimov - Deputy Director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science of the Russian National University of Humanities (RGGU).
Mr. Anisimov said that the greater the risk of disruption or instability of transportation through the Strait of Hormuz and the Suez Canal, the more valuable alternative routes are for major economies.
Russian experts say that goods with potential to be transported through the Northern Maritime Route include energy such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) and oil, and raw materials. In the future, this route can deploy high-speed container transport if Russia ensures year-round maritime operations with stable and predictable fees.
However, this expert noted that the volume of Western transport on the Northern sea route in recent times has been limited by many geopolitical factors, including sanctions, legal disputes over the status of the route, high costs for icebreaker escort services and environmental concerns.
Political analyst Denis Denisov said that the use of the Northern Sea Route by Western countries may be put on negotiation after the Ukraine conflict and important regional security issues are resolved. However, he believes that this sea route still has the potential to become an important sea transport route for the West in the future.
In the immediate future, Western countries may only propose Russia to allow the use of the Northern sea route in emergencies, such as when transport routes through the Middle East are disrupted or completely closed.
This issue could be discussed if negotiations to normalize relations between Russia and the European Union (EU) and the United States take place in the future.
Russia is currently reorienting most international transshipment activities on the Northern Sea Route to partners such as China, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). These countries are also significantly increasing maritime transport activities in the Arctic region.
