Nine ice-covered arctic islands, 650 km (400 miles) north of Norway, make up the territory of Svalbard. In accordance with the 1920 Spitsbergen Treaty, nationals of the treaty powers have equal rights to exploit Svalbard's coal deposits, subject to Norwegian regulation. The only companies still mining are Russian and Norwegian. There has been conflict with Iceland over fishing rights. Over half of the area of the islands are environmentally protected areas. |