Putin says rivalries are increasing in the Arctic, but economic cooperation is possible

By Vladimir Soldatkin and Dmitry Antonov

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Geopolitical rivalries are intensifying in the Arctic but Russia is willing to cooperate with foreign partners, including from the West, in economic ventures there that will benefit all sides, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.

In a major speech, Putin said U.S. President Donald Trump's stated intention to acquire Greenland was "serious", and it was clear that the U.S. would continue to promote its interests in the Arctic. The Greenland question had nothing to do with Russia, he said.

But Moscow was concerned that "NATO countries in general are increasingly designating the far north as a springboard for possible conflicts, practising the use of troops in these conditions, including by their 'new recruits', Finland and Sweden," he said, referring to the alliance's latest members.

Russia was monitoring the situation and building a response, including by boosting its military capabilities in the region.

"We will not allow encroachments on the sovereignty of our country and will reliably protect our national interests," Putin said.

Focus on the Arctic's strategic importance for mining, shipping and security has increased sharply because of repeated statements by Trump that he wants to acquire Greenland. He has not ruled out doing so by force.

The Arctic holds fossil fuels and minerals beneath the land and the seabed that could become more accessible with global warming. It is also an area of military competition, where defence analysts say Russia has built up its presence much faster than the West by reopening Soviet-era bases and modernising its navy.

The United States sees the Arctic as crucial for natural security, including for its early warning system against nuclear attacks.

The Kremlin says the Arctic is a zone of Russian strategic interest, and suggested in February that Russia and the U.S. could work together to develop natural resources there as the two countries pursue a fast-moving rapprochement that has unnerved Ukraine and its European allies.

NORTHERN SEA ROUTE

On the economic front, Putin has made it a top priority to ramp up commerce via the Northern Sea Route (NSR) through Arctic waters as Russia shifts trade towards Asia and away from Europe because of Western sanctions. Oil shipments from Russian ports to China via the NSR rose by a quarter last year.

Foreign partners prepared to cooperate with Russia on investment projects in the region would be guaranteed a good return, Putin said.

He called for an expansion of Russia's northern ports and the building of a merchant fleet in the Arctic, supported by new-generation icebreakers including nuclear-powered ones.

But he said Russia's domestic capabilities were insufficient for this at the moment, and that it would also require buying vessels and interacting with foreign shipbuilders.

Russia was already successfully shipping oil and liquefied natural gas via the NSR, he said.

"Now we need to create conditions for the growth of effective domestic operators that will engage in transporting containers of coal, bulk and other cargo through the Arctic. We are also open here to the creation of joint ventures," he added.

International logistics firms could supply capital, technology and merchant ships to support this, he said.

Putin delivered his speech to a conference on the Arctic in Murmansk, a port from which the NSR runs eastward across the top of Russia to the Bering Strait near Alaska.

He said Murmansk's port capacity should be at least trebled in the coming years, with construction of new terminals and railway links, and "partners" from Belarus, China, the United Arab Emirates and other countries were showing interest in this project.

(Additional reporting by Maxim Rodionov, Anastasia Lyrchikova, Andrew Osborn and Alexander Marrow; Writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Andrew Heavens)