Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is raising more and more questions about the other territories that Russia could attack, particularly the Arctic, which is a key economic resource for the eastern country that shares this border with Canada.

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According to Frédéric Lasserre, a full professor in the Department of Geography at Laval University and an expert on Arctic geopolitics, Russia has shown interest in this area for several years.

“Since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, manufacturing in Russia has not fared very well, hence the weight of natural resources [de l’Arctique] is becoming more and more consistent in the economy,” he explained in an interview with LCN on Wednesday.

Even if the Arctic is not yet a zone of tension, there have long been disagreements on the definition of the sea spaces provided for in the International Convention on the Law of the Sea: Denmark via Greenland, Canada, Russia and probably also the United States on the definition of these sea spaces,” he said Expert.

The different claims of the countries have therefore been negotiated for several years, but Russia has marked a new turning point by deciding in 2021 to expand the territory it claims.

“What’s changing the game a lot right now is whether [les négociations] or will there be more muscular stances on the part of Russia?” underlined Mr. Lasserre, who however argued that Russia’s invasion of Crimea and Donbass in 2014 had no impact on the Arctic.

• Listen to the interview with Frédéric Lasserre, professor at Laval University and expert on Arctic geopolitics

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