President Medvedev may run for second term in office

Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev does not exclude his participation in presidential elections for the next term. But citizens should approve of his work first, the President said, speaking to a Norwegian newspaper.

Speaking to Aftenposten, the president said, "If it is necessary for my country and for the maintaining of the course formed in recent years (I mean during the period when at the head of the state was Vladimir Putin and the period I have been head), I do not rule out absolutely anything for me, including participation in the elections."

"But several conditions are required for it. First, at least the results of my work must be acceptable for our citizens. And we must be orientated to achieve the result, not just participate. So, we will see," he added.

During the Russian President’s interview to Norwegian media, the Arctic – a thorny issue between the two countries – was also touched upon. President Medvedev said that Russia and Norway can resolve their long-running dispute.

“I believe this issue is perfectly solvable. We need to divide not only the continental shelf, but also the special economic zone. It is not a fast process. We need to find a compromise that will satisfy both countries. It should be a pragmatic solution that will not be questioned by either country or by businesses in the future. It must be legally protected,” President Medvedev said ahead of this Monday's visit to the country.

The two nations have been wrangling for 40 years over how to share the 180.000 square kilometers of continental shelf in the Arctic Ocean.

Many geologists believe the region may be home to vast oil and gas reserves and say global warming should make exploration more feasible.