Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have been collaborating to establish a new “ice silk road” to strengthen and extend their container shipping links through the Arctic.
Russia has been working for years to keep the Northeast Passage open throughout the summer and now Moscow appears to have found another ally to support its efforts in addition to climate change.
China indicated the renewed interest in the Arctic passage as the Tianjin Coastal Radio Station, which airs northern China’s version of the shipping forecast, added to its list of seaways.
The Bering, Dmitry, Laptev, Velikitsky and Kara Straits are all crucial in the smooth running of the Northern Sea Route, the shortest shipping route connecting the western parts of Eurasia and the Asia Pacific.
Moscow is hoping further investment into the route will have the journey between Europe and ports in the Far East compared to current journeys via the Suez Canal.
The head of the state-owned nuclear agency Rosatom, Alexei Likhache, confirmed the creation of a new Rudssian-China sub-commission for the Northern Sea Route during the visit.
He said: “Our task is to create in the shortest time possible a joint program for expanding Chinese transit along the North Sea RouteOur task is to create in the shortest time possible a joint program for expanding Chinese transit along the North Sea Route.”
Likhache forecasted Chinese transit via the route could hit 50 million tonnes within the next six years, as he noted Moscow was eager to work with China on the creation of Arctic vessels as well as the development of new ports and logistic centres along the Northern Sea Passage.
In a bid to expand trade links, the two partners have also launched the Arctic Express No.1, a sea-rail service between Moscow and Archangel, Russia’s only port in the north-west.
The 13,000km service is expected to run one week faster than the current Northern Sea Route infrastructure and will allow goods to be moved into China quicker via the Arctic Ocean.
