BARENTS SEA

Barents Sea: translation

The Barents Sea is part of theArctic Ocean, roughly bounded by Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya,Nenetsiya,Murmansk, Svalbard, and northeasternNorway. It has a surface area of 1,400,000 square kilometers. As a border zone between the Soviet Union and theNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization(NATO) member Norway, the sea was strategically sensitive during theCold War. Russia’s Northern Fleet is located at the southern rim, at Polyarny. There are significant deposits ofoilandnatural gasunder the seafloor, the largest of which is the Shtokman field in Russian waters. Boundary disputes over territorial waters and pollution from Russian naval reactors plague relations between Moscow and Oslo. The sea is an area of intense commercialfishingactivity and enjoys a wide diversity of animal and plant life. On 12 August 2000, the nuclear cruise missile submarineKursksank with all hands lost in the Barents Sea.