Participants in the Global Leadership in the Arctic: Cooperation, Innovation, Engagement, and Resilience Conference, which is taking place in Anchorage, have signed a joint statement on climate change in the Arctic region and beyond.

"The rapid warming of the Arctic is profoundly affecting communities both in the Arctic region and beyond. As Foreign Ministers and other representatives from the Arctic States attending the GLACIER Conference in Anchorage, Alaska… we reaffirm our commitment to take urgent action to slow the pace of warming in the Arctic, focusing on actions that impact the global atmosphere as well as the Arctic itself," TASS quoted the statement.

The statement recognizes the leadership role of the eight Arctic nations — Russia, the US, Denmark, Iceland, Canada, Norway, Finland and Sweden-- in promoting sustainable development of the Arctic.

Representatives from the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Republic of Korea, the Netherlands, Poland, Singapore, France, Japan and the European Union signed the statement.