Finders keepers in the Arctic?

A russian expedition reached the North Pole on Wednesday and sent two men in submarines 2.65 miles below the Arctic Ocean to explore the seabed -- and, not incidentally, to plant a titanium capsule containing the red, white and blue Russian flag. The explorers want bragging rights for a journey they compare to "taking the first step on the moon," but they are also pressing Russia's claim to a vast swath of the Arctic Ocean.

The flag-planting ritual and the thinking behind the Russians' audacious territorial claims have their roots in the development and use of the Doctrine of Discovery by European and American explorers from the 15th through the 20th centuries. Starting with Pope Nicholas V in 1455, the Europeans conveniently declared their divine right to empty land or to land occupied by "pagans and enemies of Christ." The main requirement was just first-come, first-served discovery.

When it comes to applying the discovery doctrine in the 21st century, Russia is hardly alone. Climate change is shrinking the Arctic icecap and opening new sea lanes, fisheries, oil fields and mineral caches for exploitation. Barren islands are suddenly valuable. A new race to explore, conquer and acquire another "new world" is on.

For example, the United States and Canada are in a dispute about Canadian claims that an emerging Northwest Passage sea route is in its territory. The U.S. insists that the waters are neutral and open to all, but Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper states that he will place military icebreakers in the area "to assert our sovereignty and take action to protect our territorial integrity."

Canada is also facing off against Denmark over tiny Hans Island near northwestern Greenland. In 1984, Denmark's minister for Greenland affairs landed on the island in a helicopter and raised the Danish flag, buried a bottle of brandy and left a note that said "Welcome to the Danish Island." Canada was not amused. In 2005, the Canadian defense minister and troops landed on the island and hoisted the Canadian flag. Denmark lodged an official protest.

Planting a flag or burying brandy isn't enough these days to guarantee possession -- international treaties such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea are invoked. But historically, staking a physical claim is the first rule of the discovery doctrine. Spanish, Portuguese and, later, English and French explorers engaged in all sorts of rituals on encountering new lands: hoisting the flag, displaying the Christian cross and leaving evidence to prove who was there first.