The article is devoted to the relationship between the USSR and Norway at the time of the establishment of coal mining in Svalbard before the Second World War. An analysis is made of the shift in the focus of attention of countries interested in the archipelago from military security priorities to resource aspects. Changes in the geopolitical status of the archipelago in the XX-XXI centuries are investigated. The article presents materials that characterize the development of relations between countries around Svalbard.