Lavrov vows Russia to defend its Arctic interests

(Reuters) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov vowed in an interview published on Friday that Moscow would defend its interests in the Arctic both in diplomatic and military terms.

Russian news agencies quoted Lavrov as saying in a series of documentaries that Russia was resolved to counter a drive by the United States and its NATO allies to stage an increasing number of military exercises in the Arctic region.

"We see how NATO is intensifying exercises in connection with possible crises in the Arctic," Lavrov was quoted as saying in the series entitled "Soviet breakthrough".

"Our country is fully ready to defend its interests in military, political and military-technical terms."

The agencies provided no further quotes to illustrate Lavrov's contention.

Lavrov made his comments against the background of a new Pentagon strategy on the Arctic issued in July outlining what Washington described as intensified Russian activity around the Arctic.

The U.S. report said Russia had reopened hundreds of Soviet-era military sites in the Arctic and pointed to increased Russian cooperation with China on minerals and shipping routes which could affect stability in polar regions.

When the report was issued, Russia's Foreign Ministry accused the United States of stoking tensions in the Arctic and dismissed any notion that increased cooperation in the area with China could affect regional stability.

(Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Himani Sarkar)