Russian Navy resumes military presence near Spitsbergen

Russian Navy resumes military presence near Spitsbergen MOSCOW, July 15, 2008 - The Russian Navy has resumed a military presence around the Arctic Ocean archipelago of Spitsbergen, which belongs to Norway, a navy statement said on Monday. "Russia's fleet has resumed a warship presence in the Arctic, including in the area of Spitsbergen," the statement said. Russia does not recognize Norway's exclusive right to the 200-mile economic zone near Spitsbergen. The statement also said that "the large ASW ship, Severomorsk, has already entered the area to fulfill its tasks." It will be joined, starting from July 17, by the Marshal Ustinov, a Russian Slava-class missile cruiser. According to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, an exclusive economic zone extends for 200 nautical miles (370 km) beyond the baselines of a country's territorial sea. A coastal nation has control of all economic resources within its exclusive economic zone, including fishing, mining and oil exploration.