{"id":10964,"date":"2023-11-22T06:56:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-21T19:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/?p=10964"},"modified":"2024-10-21T20:27:23","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21T10:27:23","slug":"russia-china-eye-arctic-transhipment-to-drive-timber-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/russia-china-eye-arctic-transhipment-to-drive-timber-trade\/","title":{"rendered":"Russia & China Eyes Arctic Transhipment to Control Timber Supply!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Russia and China have big plans for the Arctic, with the two superpowers now collaborating on Northern sea routes for oil, gas and timber.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As reported in Norwegian media sources<\/a>, a delegation of Russian governors met with leaders of the Shandong Port Group to discuss new shipping routes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the agenda is Russia’s Arctic timber trade, with the company transporting Russian timber to global markets through the Chinese ‘red lane.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The meetings are the latest in a series between the governors and Chinese officials in the aftermath of Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow in March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“We are entering a new level of partnership with China,” according to Murmansk Governor Andrei Chibis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

China and Russia, Governor Chibis said, “have a joint interest in the development of the Northern Sea Route.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Top FSB Border Guards officials and leaders of the Chinese Coast Guard meet in Murmansk. (Photo Credit: Supplied by Murmansk Twitter)
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According to Governor Chibis, the ice-free waters of Murmansk offer direct access to the World Sea without the need to traffic through international straits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past four years, trade turnover between Murmansk and China has increased by 140 per cent, and, according to Governor Chibis, the Chinese want more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said Chinese companies are interested in the Northern Sea Route and want to invest in shipbuilding in the Kola Peninsula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I am confident that we will succeed in boosting interaction with Chinese partners,” Governor Chibis said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Arctic has emerged as a ‘Cold War’ battleground, with Russia, China, the EU and the US all eying off new trade routes due to retreating ice caps. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Potential location for an Arctic transhipment hub. (Photo Credit: Arctic transhipment hub planning along the Northern Sea Route: A systematic literature review and policy implications of Arctic port infrastructure<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In fact, according to a report published by Brown University last year,<\/a> “the Arctic’s navigability will increase so greatly that it could yield new trade routes in international waters.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“This not only reduces the shipping industries carbon footprint but also weakens Russia’s control over trade in the Arctic.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lead author Amanda Lynch said the time to think critically about the legal, environmental and geopolitical implications is now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Russia, the Kremlin now offers tax breaks and subsidies to businesses investing in ‘capacity building’ projects in the Arctic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2020 legislation will see over US $300 billion invested in Arctic infrastructure over the next 15 years to make “the Arctic popular with Russian youth.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Putin remarked today that the Northern Sea Route (NSR) holds significant importance, irrespective of the current Ukraine conflict and associated sanctions against Russia.

NSR runs along Arctic ports and major rivers of Siberia and is widely used for fuel, timber, and minerals\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/5zwRooqpJh<\/a><\/p>— Yasmina (@yasminalombaert) May 17, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote>