Image caption Mr Putin (left) is seen here with with the Commander of the Russian Military Air and Space Defence Forces, Alexander Golovko 
 
 Russian President Vladimir Putin has told his military leadership they should build up their forces in the Arctic as a priority. "Next year, we have to complete the formation of new large units and military divisions [in the Arctic]," Mr Putin added. New air bases 
 
 At a big meeting of the country's top military officers on Tuesday, President Putin asked them to pay "particular attention to the deployment of infrastructure and military units in the Arctic". Russia is reinstating its military base in the Novosibirsk Archipelago (New Siberian Islands), which had been abandoned by the military in 1993, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. He was speaking after Canada announced plans to claim the continental shelf under the North Pole. In recent years, as the race for the Arctic intensified, Russia has repeatedly reiterated that it is set to retain its position in the region for both security and economic reasons, as well as to preserve its national integrity. However, other Arctic nations are not going to give up either in their intention of grabbing a share of the region, believed to be rich in oil, natural gas, and deposits of gold and platinum. Canada confirmed on Monday that it is preparing to include the North Pole as part of its Arctic Ocean seabed claim in the multi-country push to prove jurisdiction over further territory in the area.
– Canada is planning to claim the North Pole as part of its territory, and Russia has something to say about that: Oh, heck no. President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to boost its presence in the Arctic, and though he's discussed the idea before, the BBC calls this "one of his most direct orders yet." The Arctic has vast resources of gas and oil, and Putin says Russia must safeguard its interests there. He gave the directive at a meeting of top military officers yesterday, and also thanked them for re-opening an abandoned Arctic airbase this summer. He promised more airbases to come, saying, "Next year, we have to complete the formation of new large units and military divisions [in the Arctic]." In addition to other airfields Russia is restoring, one Russian senator and polar explorer wants to revive a polar research institution that shut down in 1936, RT.com reports.