Putin visited the Russian archipelago of Franz Josef Land, 1,000 km (600 miles) from the North Pole, as part of Russia’s drive to reassert its presence in the resource-rich region, now opening up to commercial exploration because of melting ice. more »

According to nytimes.com, the leaders of Russia and Norway amicably resolved on Tuesday a 40-year-old dispute over dividing the Barents Sea and part of the Arctic Ocean into clear economic zones that extend to the edge of Europe’s northern continental shelf. more »

Canada and Denmark have begun discussions aimed at resolving a decades-old boundary dispute in the Arctic Ocean, Canwest News Service has learned. more »

A study of Arctic countries around the world has found a significant buildup of military muscle in the North — from go-anywhere icebreakers to fast ice-capable warships. more »

Often overlooked and mostly unknown for much of human history, the Arctic has recently started to emerge from its cloak of anonymity. It has become an important source of oil and natural gas not only for the United States but also for Norway, Russia and Canada. It is front and center in the debate and the scientific studies over global warming. And, if the climate continues its warming trend, the Arctic may become an important trade route as ships ply the more »

MOSCOW — President Dmitry Medvedev says Russia must defend its claims to mineral riches of the Arctic in increasing competition with other powers. more »

The chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council, Jimmy Stotts, said last week he wants Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon to invite Inuit representatives to a meeting of five Arctic coastal states next month in Chelsea, Que., a small town just outside Ottawa. more »

Two robot submarines will plunge into the Arctic next month in an effort to help Canada stake a claim to a large swath of potentially mineral-rich seafloor in the polar region, nytimes.com says. more »