MOSCOW. Sept 17 (Interfax-AVN) - Russia will stand up for its interests in the Arctic, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev said.
"We must define the borders in the north of our country, where the Arctic lies. Our estimate is that it makes up 18% of our territory. And we are saying that 20,000 kilometers of the state border runs in this region," Patrushev told journalists after a Security Council meeting.
"We must uphold our interests in the Arctic. But we are aware that the Arctic states - Canada, Norway, Denmark and the U.S. - will defend theirs," he said.
Russia "must do research work and this work is underway. It is important that it be done faster and more precisely," he said.
The external border of the Russian continental shelf must be outlined, President Dmitry Medvedev told the Security Council earlier.