Russia`s Arctic territories are large, sparsely populated, and resource-endowed. The area generates up to 14% of Russian GDP, yet is beset by economic, social, political and ecological problems. Administratively, it spans Murmansk Oblast, Chukotka, Yamalo-Nenets and Nenets Autonomous Okrug, Arkhangelsk Oblast, Sakha Republic (Yakutia), Krasnoyarsk Krai, the Republic of Karelia and Komi. Much has been written and will still be written of the geo-economic and geopolitical importance of this vast area. But there is also something else worth keeping in mind. Namely, how the Arctic has almost sacred moral-psychological meaning for the Russian mentality: its vast remoteness reinforces Russia`s sense of great power status. Irrespective of political regime or historical epoch, Russia’s Arctic approach is marked by a drive toward continuity in this regard.
