The remote Sore Fagerfjord property in south-west Svalbard – 60 sq miles of mountains, plains and a glacier – was on sale for €300m .and the North Pole, in an Arctic region that has become a geopolitical and economic hotspot as the ice melts and relations grow ever frostier between Russia and the west.
A treaty signed in 1920 recognises Norwegian sovereignty over the territory but also gives citizens of the signatory powers – which include Russia and China – the same rights to exploit its mineral resources. Russia, for example, has maintained a coalmining community on Svalbard for decades via the state-run company Trust Arktikugol.
“The current owners of Sore Fagerfjord … are open to selling to actors that could challenge Norwegian legislation in Svalbard,” said the trade and industry minister, Cecilie Myrseth. “It could disturb stability in the region and potentially threaten Norwegian interests.”Per Kyllingstad, a lawyer who represents the sellers, previously said he had received “concrete signs of interest” from Chinese potential buyers who had “been showing a real interest in the Arctic and Svalbard for a long time”.
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