Moscow, Russia | Xinhua | The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Norwegian Charge d’Affaires Solveig Rossebo over Norway’s decision to block the delivery of goods to Spitsbergen, the ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
Rossebo was informed about the “unacceptable situation around the delivery of cargos to Spitsbergen blocked by the Norwegian side that were designated for the operations of the Arktikugol federal state unitary enterprise on the archipelago,” the foreign ministry said.
As a result of the Norwegian restrictions imposed against Russian transport on the Russian-Norwegian border in April, vital goods such as food and medical equipment, which are necessary for the normal functioning of the enterprise and Russia’s Consulate General on Spitsbergen, are being blocked, according to the ministry.
Russia demanded that Norway “resolve the issue as soon as possible,” pointing out that such hostile actions would “inevitably lead to appropriate retaliatory measures.”