The move is aimed at boosting cargo movement through the Northern Sea Route and facilitating trade
India and Russia will sign a pact to speed up operationalizing the Arctic shipping route as the countries take steps to achieve a targeted $100 billion in bilateral trade.
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin posted on the official portal of regulatory legal acts on Tuesday that Rosatom’s proposal to develop cooperation in maritime cargo transportation along the Northern Sea Route (NSR) has been approved.
The Arctic route will provide India with alternative passages to ship commodities to markets in eastern and northern Europe, saving up to 40% in distance and about two weeks of travel time compared to traditional routes through the Suez Canal.
The uncertainty over the transit of commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz after the Middle East conflict began late in February has impacted India, which is heavily dependent on energy imports.
The Arctic route pact would also be a significant boost to efforts by Russia and India to achieve the targeted $100 billion in bilateral trade by 2030.
🇷🇺🇮🇳 Russia Moves To Fast-Track Arctic Trade Route With India
Russia has authorized state nuclear giant Rosatom to sign an MoU with India to expand cooperation on cargo transport through the Northern Sea Route (NSR) – the shipping corridor that could emerge as an alternative to… pic.twitter.com/ByP8NnqUNP
Rosatom was instructed to sign the memorandum on behalf of the Russian government, Mishustin posted. Rosatom, which has assets in power engineering, machine building, and construction, is Russia’s designated operator and coordinator of the NSR.
The state-owned conglomerate also manages Russia’s unique fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers, essential for keeping the Arctic shipping lane navigable.
In June, Aleksey Chekunkov, Russia’s minister for the development of the Far East and the Arctic, said India is considering increasing its use of the NSR in the wake of disruptions to seaborne trade in the Strait of Hormuz.
India and Russia formalized the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Support (RELOS) pact during President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi in December. The pact offers India access to ports along the NSR, from Vladivostok to Murmansk.
The outcomes of Putin’s trip also included the expansion of logistics links to develop the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), the Chennai–Vladivostok corridor – also known as the Eastern Maritime Corridor (EMC) – and the NSR.
Putin said that cooperation on the 3,500-mile NSR, the 4,500-mile INSTC, and the 6,450-mile EMC would accelerate under the new bilateral agreement.
