The Russian Defense Ministry plans to obtain data to clarify Arctic maritime boundaries by 2020, RIA Novosti quotes Deputy Commander in Chief of the Navy Alexander Fedotenkov as saying at a meeting of the State Commission for Arctic Development.

Mr. Fedotenkov issued a proposal to conduct hydrographic and topographic surveys in the coastal waters and on the coastal areas of the Russian Arctic zone. The goal is to obtain more accurate information on the position of the coastlines and update state nautical charts.

"The suggested interdepartmental activities to be completed this year include determining the exact location of straight baselines along the Arctic coast of Russia and around Franz Josef Land archipelago and those aimed at recognizing extra-territorial Arctic waters as part of a historical area," the Deputy Defense Minister noted.

Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the State Commission for Arctic Development, Dmitry Rogozin had earlier suggested that the Defense Ministry collect data on state boundaries in the Arctic Ocean that were determined during the Soviet era.