Medvedev in Oslo to focus on Arctic border dispute

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev began a state visit to Norway yesterday during which the two countries were to discuss a long running dispute over their border in the resource-rich Barents Sea.

Since 1970 Norway and the Soviet Union, and then Russia, have contested a 176,000-square-kilometre maritime area straddling their economic zones which is believed to contain vast oil and gas reserves.

In an interview published on Saturday ahead of the two-day visit, Medvedev told Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten it was "absolutely possible" for the two countries to delineate their Barents Sea maritime borders.

"The most important thing is to find a solution which suits both sides, and not through the path of the sides giving up their positions, but through the path of finding a reasonable compromise," he said.

"In other words, this should be a pragmatic decision that may not subsequently be challenged by either of the states or any of their businesses, which is legitimate and legally sound," he added.

The issue is to be discussed during Mr Medvedev's meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg today, but an accord is not expected to be reached during the visit, the Norwegian foreign minister signalled.

"There is a positive atmosphere, but as I've said before, such an agreement cannot be negotiated under time pressure. However, every day that goes by brings us closer to an agreement," Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told local television.

Norway and Russia agreed in 2007 on a 70-kilometre border stretch in the south of the coveted maritime zone.

According to the US Geological Survey, the Arctic could contain 90 billion barrels of oil and up to 30 per cent of the world's undiscovered natural gas reserves.

The far north, energy questions, climate and nuclear disarmament will also be discussed during the two day visit, Norwegian foreign ministry spokesman Bjoern Jahnsen said.

But as there is no truly contentious issue dividing the two countries, Medvedev's trip is essentially a "courtesy visit," said Indra Oeverland, a researcher at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, quoted yesterday by daily Dagsavisen.

After having lunch with the Norwegian royal couple, Mr Medvedev and his wife Svetlana visited the Norwegian Armed Forces Museum and later placed a bouquet of flowers on a memorial to Soviet soldiers who died during World War II.

Mr Medvedev then participated in a Norwegian-Russian business seminar alongside Mr Stoltenbeg.

Business relations between the two countries have been marked by a tug-of-war between Norwegian telecom operator Telenor, which is 54 per cent state-owned, and Russian business tycoon Mikhail Friedman's Alfa group over their joint ventures in Ukraine and Russia.

The two groups settled in late 2009, after a long legal battle closely watched by international investors.

"No cooperation can proceed without running into some difficult issues and our task ... is to minimise such obstacles and potential problems for business cooperation," Mr Medvedev told the seminar, without naming the dispute.

His visit is to take a more political twist today as the two countries are set to sign a series of accords of which the content has not yet been unveiled.

Mr Medvedev is scheduled to leave for a state visit to Denmark later today.