This article examines the nexus between Russian territorial interests and energy policy in the Arctic, as well as Western interpretations of Russian behaviour in these areas. The first part of the article deals with Russia's general Arctic policy and attempts to debunk some geopolitical myths, while the second part zooms in on the energy resources in the Russian Arctic and the prospects for the participation of international oil companies in the extraction of those resources. The article argues that Western accounts of Russian interest in the Arctic are often distorted. In fact, the approach taken by Russia is not unlike that of the Western Arctic littoral states.