HE has sunk to the bottom of the world's deepest lake, skied down volcanoes and fished in Siberian rivers. Now, Russia's action-man prime minister, Vladimir Putin, has gone one better — coming face to snout with a giant (if slumbering) polar bear during a trip to Russia's remote Arctic north.

In the Kremlin's latest attempt to lay claim to the Arctic, Putin travelled to Franz Josef Land, a collection of far-flung Russian islands in the extreme northeast of the Barents Sea.

Speaking next to the bear, Putin said Russia had “profound strategic interests” in the region. He said the Arctic was key to Russia's defence and security, with the Kremlin's northern fleet stationed there and its bombers patrolling above the ice. “We have economic interests and mine mineral resources here,” he said.

According to Kommersant newspaper, Russian scientists captured the bear ahead of Putin's visit and kept it captive for 10 days. After hugging the male animal round the neck, Putin fitted it with an electronic collar. Asked by a female journalist about the bear's massive paws, he said “They're heavy. He's the real master of the Arctic.”

Kommersant said scientist shunted the bear by helicopter, sedating it with a tranquiliser dart. They fed it fish and expired sausages. At one point a female bear came to visit. The bear was re-sedated an hour before Putin flew into Nagurskoye, Russia's most northerly outpost on the western Alexandra Land.

Putin travelled to Franz Josef Land earlier this month with a pool of handpicked Russian journalists.

— The Guardian, London