The world has become nostalgic for the medieval times where countries have to lay claim to territories.

While the United Nations is still deliberating the China and Philippine case over a small group of islands, Russia is submitting claim to the Arctic - including the North Pole, and is seeking recognition of such from the UN.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the Russian government announced on Tuesday that it delivered "ample scientific data" to the UN to back its claim of over 460,000 square miles of the territory.

The Russian Federation cited wealth of energy, gems, and precious metals believed to lie in the predominantly untouched land mass.

Moscow is also asserting ownership of the Northern Sea Route, which is said to be potentially lucrative for the seasonal shipping route above the northern coastline.

The country even went so far as dispatching an Arctic explorer, Artur N. Chilingarov, to take a miniature submarine to the sea floor right below the north pole, scoop soil samples, and plant a titanium Russian flag on the area.

This is not the first time that countries tried to lay their stake on the Arctic. Russia was first to do so in an unsuccessful bid in 2002.

Other countries that tried to do the same were the US, Canada, Denmark, and Norway - all of which are pursuing jurisdiction over the sea bed, where a quarter of the world's remaining oil and gas reserves are believed to lie.

According to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a nation may stake their claim on an exclusive economic zone over the continental shelf up to 200 nautical miles from their recognized borders. For cases where the continental shelf extends beyond the limit, the law says that a country can dominate the area for up to 350 nautical miles from its shores.

In a statement cited by the New York Times, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that the claim will expand the Russian territory on land and on sea by about 1.2 million square kilometers, or 463,000 square miles.

The statement also said, "To base its claim, Russia in this region used a broad range of scientific data collected over many years of Arctic exploration. Submitting the claim to the commission is an important step in formulating Russia's right to the Arctic Shelf in accordance with the United Nations convention on the Law of the Sea."

Organizations like Greenpeace are unhappy about different countries laying claims on the Arctic territory.

In a statement to The Moscow Times, Greenpeace described the move as "ominus," adding that "The melting of the Arctic ice is uncovering a new and vulnerable sea, but countries like Russia and Norway want to turn it into the next Saudi Arabia."

The UN rejected Russia's claim for the territory over a decade ago, but with new research and data to back it this time, there is no telling what will happen next.