The purposes of this conference are to identify opportunities 

 for jointly enhancing protection of the Bering Sea environment; 

 to consider the foundation of international law, particularly 

 bilateral agreements, with respect to managing and protecting 

 migratory species and shared natural resources; and to compare 

 and discuss applicable domestic statutes and regulations. 

 The Conference is scheduled to be held on 6-8 June 1989 in 

 Fairbanks, Alaska. Representatives from the U.S. and Soviet 

 Governments, the State of Alaska, municipal and village or 

 tribal governments, trade associations and industry, Native 

 peoples, and public interest groups will be invited to 

 participate in the Conference. 



Polar Bear Agreement 



As noted in Chapter III, the International Agreement on 

 Conservation of Polar Bears was concluded in 1973 by the 

 Governments of Canada, Denmark, Norway, the United States, 

 and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and entered into 

 force in 1976. The signatories to the Agreement designated 

 the Polar Bear Specialist Group, which was established in 

 1967 by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature 

 and Natural Resources, to act as an advisory group to facilitate 

 discussion of scientific issues and exchange of information 

 relating to conservation and management of polar bears. The 

 Group met in October 1988 in Sochi, U.S.S.R., to exchange 

 research and management information and to discuss possible 

 cooperative research programs. 



In 1989, the Commission will continue to work with the 

 Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee, the Arctic 

 Research Commission, and the Interagency Arctic Policy Group 

 to help develop and implement U.S. Arctic research policy and 

 programs. Further, the Commission will devote attention to a 

 careful examination of issues relating to polar bear conser- 

 vation, including the guestion of U.S. compliance with the 

 Agreement on Conservation of Polar Bears. 



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