Already, most of the shipments through Murmansk's Barents Sea port to the north or Kandalaksha's White Sea port to the south is made up of metals and minerals, and the bulk is set to grow.

BBC: NEWS | Business | Metals boom sparks Kola nature fears

India, in turn, is pushing into the South China Sea, and seeking port facilities in Vietnam.

ECONOMIST: Asia's navies

Most oilfields are in the landlocked south, which needs northern pipelines to Port Sudan on the Red Sea to export the stuff.

ECONOMIST: Sudan's split

The Pentagon wants to use it as a port of call for its navy ships passing through the South China Sea.

ECONOMIST: Military diplomacy

They include a new sea port at Hambantota, in the president's constituency in the south, an oil-storage facility, a new airport, a coal-fired power plant and an expressway.

ECONOMIST: Brotherly love, massive aid and no questions asked

In lieu of a big arms buildup, it is opening up a prized military asset, its deep-water port in Cam Ranh Bay, in the hopes that foreign navies will steam into the South China Sea and help secure the region's shipping lanes.

WSJ: Asia's New Arms Race