UK-Russia relations in the Arctic: from damage limitation to a cooperative agenda?

ABSTRACT This study examines the UK-Russian relations in the Arctic in the post-Ukraine crisis era. More specifically, this paper provides a comparative analysis of Russian and British strategic documents on the Arctic with the aim to identify commonalties and differences in these countries’ approaches to the High North and find out whether they are favourable for international cooperation in the Arctic or not. The study also presents an analysis of Russian-British cooperation before 2014, when the Ukrainian crisis began and the UK joined the Western anti-Russian sanctions. The author identifies the energy and science sectors as the most dynamic and promising areas for bilateral cooperation in the High North. The author concludes that any real breakthrough in the UK-Russian Arctic cooperation is unlikely in the foreseeable future, but notes that this cooperation has managed to survive numerous crises in the UK-Russian bilateral relations and now it is gradually gaining a stable and mutually beneficial character.