Russia will stand firm against attempts to restrict its competitive advantage in the Arctic and will advocate partnership policy in the region, First Deputy Foreign Minister Vladimir Titov said in an interview with the TASS news agency.

He believes that the global community should prevent "international Arctic cooperation from being affected by politics and protect it from confrontational logic."

"We are confident that the policy of partnership will determine the future of the Arctic," Titov said. "We will stand firm against any attempts to restrict Russia's competitive advantage in the region, impose aggressive rhetoric and destructive undertakings, including the expansion of NATO's military activity near the Russian border."

Titov said that Artic states are facing common challenges caused by both global climate change and the increased economic activity in the Arctic.

"Our foreign policy activity in the Arctic is aimed primarily at promoting collective decisions on regional development by Artic states and on expanding practical interaction," the politician said. According to Titov, these issues will be discussed by high-level foreign representatives at the fourth The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue forum, which will take place in Arkhangelsk on March 29-30, 2017. "This respectable forum will compare our approaches to opening up and using the Arctic's potential in order to improve the quality of life for the people in the Far North," he said.