LONDON, October 20. /TASS/. Brussels is demonstrating a neocolonial attitude by trying to curb cooperation between other countries in the Arctic, said the Russian embassy in the United Kingdom.

"[Chief of the European diplomacy] Kaja Kallas’s interview with The Times exposes the EU’s neocolonial mindset: rather than promote Arctic cooperation, Brussels, driven by impotent rage, seeks to contain other nations and deny them opportunities to develop," it said in a statement.

The comment was a response to the interview of the head of the European diplomacy, in which she said that the West must prevent China and Russia from establishing control over the new sea route opening up in the Arctic. The story was published ahead of the presentation of the EU’s updated Arctic strategy, which focuses on geopolitics, security, and a tougher approach to the actions of Beijing and Moscow.