Just two weeks before Sweden takes over the presidency of the EU Council, the Commission yesterday adopted its Baltic Sea Strategy, the first ever comprehensive union strategy for a EU macro-region.

Within the past few months there has been much concern over not only Russia’s position on the Arctic, but the force with which the country said it will protect its interests in the region. Several reports coming out of Russia on its handling of the Arctic conflict in the future were taken to mean that the country was fully prepared to go to war and would be increasing its military presence in the area in preparation.

Railway development was on top of this week’s meeting in the Barents Euro-Arctic Transport Area (BEATA) in Arkhangelsk.

During his address at the 3rd Symposium on the Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval & Maritime Operations at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, Senator Mark Begich has recommended five major policy initiatives to help Alaska, and the United States in general, acclimatize to what he has deemed the “Second Arctic Century”.

Acknowledging the increased risk for oil spills in Arctic waters, Norwegian authorities have decided to equip the Coast Guard vessel “Svalbard” with oil protection equipment.

Gazprom has over the over the last five months produced 58 billion cubic meters less gas than in the same period in 2008.

The municipality of Teriberka, Murmansk Oblast, has signed a cooperation agreement with the Norwegian municipality of Båtsfjord on joint fishery projects.

According to one Arctic researcher, scientists studying climate change and environmental issues should take a page from their own book and try to become more environmentally friendly while going about their research.

The Norwegian Minister of the Environment Erik Solheim today meets with the Secretary-General of UN’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) Efthimios E. Mitropoulos.

Gazprom’s Aleksey Miller and StatoilHydro’ Helge Lund today signed a memorandum of understanding on joint oil and gas exploration in the Arctic.