Putin: Trilateral Cooperation in Arctic Development Is on the Horizon

Sept. 8—During the Q&A session following his speech at the Sept. 5 plenary session of the Vladivostok Eastern Economic Forum, Russian President Vladimir Putin raised the intention for trilateral economic cooperation between Russia, China and third countries, including the United States:

“By the way, we have already discussed possible work in a trilateral format on some of our Arctic fields with our Chinese friends. In fact, all these options are being discussed, they are on the table. We only need a political decision. This is possible, and cooperation in both gas and oil would be mutually beneficial.”

This came immediately after Putin had stated that cooperation with American companies in Alaska and the Arctic more generally was a real possibility: “We can work together in the Arctic.”

While Putin didn’t specify trilateral cooperation between the U.S., China, and Russia, his special envoy Kirill Dmitriev did raise the possibility explicitly on the eve of the Vladivostok Forum. Dmitriev told Zvezda television on Sept. 2, “Certainly, Russia is eyeing the opportunity of joint Russia-China-U.S. projects, including in the Arctic region, specifically in the energy sector also. We exactly see that projects should not be divided there into Russian-Chinese or Russian-U.S.,” he remarked. “We see joint investments are possible, including for Chinese and American investors, into joint projects, including in hydrocarbon projects in the Arctic.”