in the Arctic. The APG is chaired by the U.S. Department of State and meets monthly to develop and implement U.S. programs and policies in the Arctic, including those relevant to the activities of the Arctic Council. State Department's Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs (OPA) is a part of the State Department's Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES). OPA is responsible for formulating and implementing U.S. policy on international issues concerning the oceans, the Arctic, and Antarctica. Canada (NWT, Nunavut, and Yukon) Canada has more Arctic land mass than any country. On August 23, 2010, Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper said protection of Canada's sovereignty over its northern regions was its number one and "non-negotiable priority" in Arctic policy. Canada has slated $109 million, to be spent before 2014, for research to substantiate extended continental shelf claims. Canada's Arctic policy priorities are: to try to resolve boundary issues; to secure international recognition for the full extent of Canada's extended continental shelf; and to address Arctic governance and related emerging issues, such as public safety. Canada’s Arctic Foreign Policy Pamphlet Statement on Canada's Arctic foreign policy: Exercising sovereignty and promoting Canada's Northern Strategy abroad G-7 finance ministers met in Nunavut in February 2010. Canada's Northern Strategy Iceland Denmark (Greenland, Faroe Islands) Norway The Norwegian Polar Institute in Tromsø is hosting the Arctic Council Secretariat from 2007 to 2013. The Norwegian Government's Strategy for the High North (2.21.07) Sweden Finland The Finnish Arctic Strategy was released June 4, 2010 and concentrates on seven priority areas: security, environment, economy, infrastructure, arctic indigenous residents, institutions, and the European Union. Russia In 2007, Russia planted a flag on the Arctic Ocean seafloor beneath the North Pole while performing research to substantiate its claim to an extended continental shelf. The flag planting was perceived erroneously to be a land claim—a claim Canada and other Arctic nations rebuked even though the Russian Government clearly stated that no such claim was made. In 2009, a Russian government policy document cited western reports of a potential for military conflict over Arctic resources. Despite having lost 18 percent of its population between 1989 and 2002, the Russian Arctic comprises 25% of Russia's landmass and still contains 80 percent of the four million people who inhabit the planet's Arctic region. Russia's current Arctic policy is contained in the document "Basics of Russian Federation State Policy for