5 nations chart Arctic course

ILULISSAT, Greenland, May 29 (UPI) -- The five nations bordering the Arctic region Wednesday outlined how they will deal with oil and mineral exploration, the environment and other issues there.

Meeting in Ilulissat, Greenland, the representatives of Canada, Russia, the United States, Norway and Denmark issued the Illulissat Declaration, which intones that the Arctic Ocean "stands at the threshold of significant changes," Canwest News Service reported.

"Climate change and the melting of ice have a potential impact on vulnerable ecosystems, the livelihoods of local inhabitants and indigenous communities, and the potential exploitation of natural resources," the group's document said. "By virtue of their sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction in large areas of the Arctic Ocean, the five coastal states are in a unique position to address these possibilities and challenges."

The document goes on to say the nations oppose any international attempt to govern the Arctic polar region, along the lines of Antarctica.

In a statement, The New York Times reported, Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moller said the five nations have "politically committed" to resolve their differences in the region through negotiations.

"And thus we have hopefully, once and for all, killed all the myths of a 'race to the North Pole.' The rules are in place. And the five states have now declared that they will abide by them," Moller said.