Moscow is ready for cooperation in the region, but confrontation will not have "any positive effect," the Kremlin has said

Moscow would welcome a new EU Arctic policy if it is aimed at international cooperation and not confrontation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. Russia is an Arctic nation and has major interests in the region, which it will not hesitate to defend, he told journalists on Wednesday.

Peskov was commenting on a recent statement by the bloc's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, who called for a "a fresh EU Arctic Policy" at the 2026 Arctic Frontiers Conference on Tuesday. Brussels needs to "ground this in strong partnerships," she said.

Kallas, however, framed Russia as a threat and not a potential partner in her speech, as she accused Moscow of turning the Arctic into a "testing ground for Russian missiles" and launching a "military buildup in the region."

"The Arctic region needs international cooperation," Peskov said, commenting on Kallas' words. If the EU seeks "confrontation, which is now fashionable in Brussels, we could hardly welcome that and it would hardly have any positive effect," the Kremlin spokesman warned.

"We are open for cooperation and partnership," he said, adding that Russia also "has major interests in the Arctic [that] we will defend by using all the arsenal of international law."

In her speech, Kallas urged the EU to "catch up" with Russia's military capabilities in the Arctic. EU member states that are NATO members should ensure that the EU's security concerns align with those of NATO, including in the Arctic, she said.

This comes amid NATO anti-submarine drills off the coast of Norway. Scheduled for February 2-24, Operation Arctic Dolphin is focused on detecting, tracking, and destroying submarines in an area used by the Russian Northern Fleet to enter the Atlantic, CBS reported on Wednesday.

The drill is a part of a race to secure the region for the US-led bloc, US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO's supreme allied commander in Europe, told CBS. It involves ships, submarines, and aircraft from Spain, Germany, France, the UK, and Norway among other nations, according to the report.