| Abstract: | The increasing importance of the Soviet Arctic for navigation in connection with a northward shift of resource development and the strengthening of the Soviet icebreaker fleet with nuclear-powered icebreakers and modern conventional icebreakers has focused attention on the issue of freedom of navigation in the Soviet sector of the Arctic. The Soviet sector, defined in a 1926 decree as extending from the mainland to the North Pole, comprises the Northern Sea Route, which the Soviet Union regards as an internal shipping route, and seas of the Arctic Ocean that it views as historic waters. Because of differences in the interpretation of international law, there is ambiguity regarding the right of innocent passage through the Soviet Arctic by vessels of other nations. The growing significance of Arctic shipping operations raises the timeliness of the issue. |
