Korea obtains permanent observer status at Arctic Council

South Korea gained permanent observer status at the Arctic Council, the foreign ministry said Wednesday.

The decision came in a meeting of eight member countries of the Arctic Council in Kiruna in northern Sweden, the ministry said. Previously, Korea was an "ad-hoc observer" at the council.

As a result, Korea will have a bigger say in the council's policy-making process regarding the development of the polar region, a ministry official said.

The eight member countries are Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States.

AJP