Russia To Annex North Pole

There is no lack of insinuation that Russian President Vladimir Putin is looking to seize more power in his own country. Now, however, reports indicate that Putin's Russia may also be looking to extend it's economic reach with what some are claiming to be an "audacious argument." In his latest move Putin has claimed that an underwater Russian ridge links his country to the North Pole and therefore constitutes the basis for a Russian bid to take control over a huge area and its potential for oil, gas and mineral resources. Reportedly a Russian scientific mission made the discovery, which gives Russia a "new addition" five times the size of Great Britain (some 460,000 square miles). Currently the management of Arctic zone is given to the International Seabed Authority and international law restricts countries bordering the Arctic to a 200-mile economic zone. Russia's claim runs directly counter to this protocol. The region is purported to contain 10 billion tons of gas and oil deposits.

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