Russia files UN claim over Arctic

MOSCOW: Russia pressed a claim at the United Nations Tuesday for an additional 1.2 million square kilometers (463,000 square miles) of Arctic shelf, stepping up a race for the region’s hydrocarbon and mineral wealth.
In a submission to back a 2001 claim at the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, Russia said research showed it had rights over the swathe — an area the size of South Africa. This would include the North Pole and potentially give Russia access to an estimated 4.9 billion tons of hydrocarbons, according to government estimates. The Arctic has become a theater for rival claims over a sea floor believed to be rich in minerals, oil and gas.
Under international law, a country has exclusive economic rights over the continental shelf within a 200-nautical-mile (370-kilometer) radius from its coast.
However Arctic nations have been jostling to claim greater areas.
They have been spurred by the shrinkage of Arctic sea ice, which opens up the potential for new transport routes and mineral and energy exploitation.
Russia says extensive research spanning several years proves its continental shelf extends far beyond the 200-nautical-mile radius.
Its claim includes the Mendeleev Rise as well as the Lomonosov Ridge, which Denmark and Canada also say is theirs. Russia argues they, like the North Pole, are part of the Eurasian continent.
Russia previously submitted a claim to the UN commission in 2001 but was told it lacked supporting scientific data.