ARKHANGELSK (Sputnik) – The Russian Defense Ministry offered to the country’s Security Council on Tuesday to expand the list of Russia’s so-called historic waters in the Arctic, Deputy Navy Commander-in-Chief Vice Adm. Alexander Fedotenkov said.
According to the United Nations, the term "historic waters" refers to "waters which are treated as internal waters but which would not have that character were it not for the existence of an historic title."
"The Defense Ministry has prepared and presented to the Russian Security Council suggestions on adding additional Arctic seas to the list of Russian historic waters," Fedotenkov said at a session of the government's Arctic development commission.
The Arctic shelf is believed to hold large deposits of oil and natural gas. Five countries bordering the area are particularly interested in the wealth of the Arctic region, including Russia, the United States, Canada, Norway and Denmark.
