The Arctic ice has lost the battle. Long impassable to merchant ships, they have given in to the efforts of Russia and China in the face of global warming. Russia announced this Friday the arrival of a first ship from China via the “Northern Sea Route” that connects Asia to Europe via the Arctic, one of Moscow’s great hopes for the development of its international trade.
“Today the first ship arrived in the Kaliningrad region via the Northern Sea Route,” regional governor Anton Alikhanov said in Telegram. However, he did not provide any information about what cargo it was. Photos released by the Russian official show a container ship named NEWNEW POLAR BEAR. According to him, the ship left Shanghai via Arkhangelsk (Russia’s Great North) before arriving in Baltiysk in the Kaliningrad region, a Russian enclave at the gates of the EU.
Suez Canal competition
Transport companies want to ensure that this route, also known as the Northeast Passage, can be used permanently: “It will be cheaper and faster than via the Suez Canal,” he said. Moscow hopes that this route through the Arctic, which is navigable due to global warming and melting ice, can in the future compete with the Suez Canal, particularly in hydrocarbon trade.
Russia has been building port infrastructure, liquefied natural gas facilities and icebreakers for years. But overcoming the extreme conditions of the Arctic remains a major challenge and this route is still far from replacing the Suez Canal. Russia’s desire to expand trade through this sea route has become even more important for the Kremlin with the adoption of numerous sanctions measures over its attack on Ukraine, which are undermining its trade.