Arctic explorers dismiss critics

MOSCOW, Russia (Reuters) -- The Russian explorers who planted a flag beneath the North Pole have made a triumphant homecoming and say they do not care about foreign critics who have complained their mission was a crude land grab.

"The Arctic always was Russian, and it will remain Russian," expedition leader Artur Chilingarov told reporters after he landed at Moscow's Vnukovo airport, where well wishers brandished bottles of champagne and Russian flags.

"We are happy that we placed a Russian flag on the ocean bed, where not a single person has ever been, and I don't give a damn what some foreign individuals think about that," he said.

A Russian mini-submersible last week planted a rust-proof Russian flag on the Arctic Ocean bed as part of an expedition intended to strengthen Russia's claims to the North Pole, which under international law belongs to no single state.

Russia was joining a scramble by other states with Arctic coastlines to gain access to the region's energy resources.

Canada mocked the expedition, with Foreign Minister Peter Mackay saying Russia was behaving like a 15th century explorer. "You can't go around the world and just plant flags and say 'We're claiming this territory," he said. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 Reuters. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

All About Russia