Russia and China are forming a joint commission to advance development along the North Sea Route (NSR). Alexey Likhachev, CEO of Rosatom, announced this on Channel One's broadcast, as reported by TASS.

'On the Russian side, Rosatom will take charge of this effort. The Chinese side will be led by their Minister of Transportation,' he explained.

The future commission's responsibilities extend beyond just overseeing Chinese transit via the NSR. 'Our goal is to quickly establish a joint programme to expand Chinese transit along the North Sea Route and initiate several other projects that use this global route's significant developmental potential,' stated the head of Rosatom.

In 2018, a federal law was enacted that assigned Rosatom responsibilities related to NSR infrastructure development. In 2022, under a Russian government directive, Rosatom established the Chief Directorate of the North Sea Route (Glavsevmorput), tasked with overseeing NSR navigation. Besides issuing navigation permits in NSR waters, this entity also has the authority to suspend, renew, modify or terminate these permits. These changes were introduced amid increasing cargo flow along the NSR to bolster navigational safety in its waters.