Under a 1920 agreement signed in Paris by 48 countries, including Russia and Norway, all parties have equal fishing rights near the Spitsbergen Archipelago. Oslo has been seeking exclusive rights to the area since 1977.
"We intend to solve disputes emerging on the Spitsbergen Archipelago on the basis of the 1920 agreement. I am convinced that agreements can be found through this framework," Lavrov said on his visit to the northern Russian city of Murmansk, where he met with his Norwegian counterpart, Jonas Gahr Store.
Russia and Norway have been involved in a decades-long dispute over maritime boundaries in the Barents Sea, which is rich in oil and gas reserves, as well as over fishing resources. Norway frequently detains Russian ships in the area on accusations of illegal fishing.
