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Russia’s controversial “foreign
agent” law goes into e#ect,
creating new rules and regu-
lations for NGOs that receive
funding from abroad. The new
regulations are frequently crit-
icized by external observers.
Canadian Ministers Leona Aglukkaq and John
Duncan announce that the proposed Mary Riv-
er iron project on Nunavut’s Ba!n Island has re-
ceived approval from the federal government.
The United States’National Oceanic and At-
mospheric Administration releases its 2012
Arctic Report Card, showing many indica-
tions of ongoing warming conditions in the
North. The Report Card looks at many other
issues for Arctic systems as well.
The Arctic Yearbook 2012 is released online.
Russia’s Ministry of Justice orders the
closure of the Russian Association of
Indigenous Peoples of the North, Si-
beria and Far East (RAIPON), drawing
protest from several international or-
ganizations of which RAIPON is a part.
Gazprom representatives announce that
the Shtokman project is still moving for-
ward, in one way or another. But stay
tuned for more...
In a public-relations nightmare,
Shell’s drilling rig Kulluk breaks
free of its tow vessel in rough
and stormy seas o# of Alaska.
On New Year’s Day, it will run
aground on Sitkalidak Island.
Sweden’s state-owned LKAB is pleased to report
that its iron mine in Kiruna, Sweden, which sup-
plies much of the iron used by European steel-
makers, produced 26.3 million tonnes of iron-ore
products in 2012 - a new record for the mine.
The Ob River arrives in To-
bata, Japan carrying the
"rst-ever LNG cargo to
transit the full Northern
Sea Route.