Russia wants to cooperate on energy matters with Norway, a neighbor that has sought access to Russia's huge Arctic gas reserves, President Dmitry Medvedev was quoted as saying Friday.
"We are interested in strengthening various forms of relations with Norway, including cooperation on energy, in the problems of the Arctic," Medvedev said at a meeting with foreign ambassadors, quoted by ITAR-TASS news agency.
In 2007 Norway's StatoilHydro ASA (STO) energy group won the right to help develop the huge Shtokman gas field off Russia's coast in the Barents Sea, becoming one of the few foreign energy firms to win a toehold in Russia in recent years.
Russia has lately sought to strengthen its claim to disputed parts of the energy-rich Arctic region, sparking a diplomatic tug-of-war with the other states in the region, Canada, Denmark, Norway and the U.S.