Since the first organised expedition into the Arctic in the late 16th century, the region, alongside the Antarctic, has been the frontier that countries haven chosen not to wage war over. In a world where it seems countries have forgotten the environmental value of their own territory, it’s intriguing to see an international organisation with the headline focus of the preservation of the flora, fauna, and the landscape of the vast tundra and sea in the Arctic Circle.
The Arctic Council, formed through the Ottawa Declaration in 1996 with 8 member states, could be mistaken for just another intergovernmental forum where countries are simply all talk and no action, but it has thus far served exactly the purpose it was mandated with. The Council is a platform promoting ‘cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic states’ with a substantial focus on ‘sustainable development and environmental protection’ (Arctic Council). Its four key focuses can be articulated as the environment and climate change, biodiversity, oceans, and the Indigenous Arctic peoples. The Council provides a governance framework which covers the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the member states and the international waters beyond those boundaries.
The Arctic Council has a certain component which makes it significantly more unique compared to similar intergovernmental organisations. Alongside the permanent member states are what are known as Permanent Participants—6 organisations representing the Arctic Indigenous people who in all regards should be key stakeholders in any discussion pertaining to the Arctic. The member Indigenous organisations have the ability to actively participate in Council activities and have a consultative role.
Nevertheless, increasingly the Arctic is being seen as a high-tension area of strategic importance despite efforts by the Scandinavian states and the European Union to keep it a low-tension region.
As climate change takes it toll on the various ecosystems and biomes on our planet, its repercussions are manifesting in the North Pole in the most obvious means. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), in their reports, have identified a decline in the Arctic sea ice extent. Year-round, the Arctic Ocean has sea-ice present and it is completely covered during the boreal winter months. However, with a warming climate there are estimates that the Arctic summers will soon be ice-free, when there would be less than 1 million square kilometres of sea ice, by the middle of the century (IPCC).
This development poses significant risks to the climate for the rest of the world, reduced ice cover on the Earths surface reduces the albedo of the planet—the ability of the planet to reflect back heat. All of this amplifying the greenhouse effect that already exists in the atmosphere.
For the neighbouring states of the Arctic Circle, the receding summer and year-round ice cover could bring potential benefits, namely for Canada and Russia. From the unleashing of new lands for the agricultural industry, the unlocking of natural resources previously inaccessible underneath the surface, such as oil and gas, and the opening of new shipping lanes which could alter the current global trade dynamic forever. Russian vessels have already crossed the Arctic Ocean in winter without the need for an icebreaker—a first in recorded history, an event touted by the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, as ‘the opening of the Arctic’.
The final barrier to exploration and development of the Arctic will vanish, being replaced by competition and aggressive posturing from the other Arctic states.
A changing climate will not just melt the ice, but will also melt the status quo—the status quo that has preserved the peace in the frozen north. The Arctic Council operates on a basis of mutual understanding and cooperation, but if countries are to proceed in their own self interest—what they can gain from the new Arctic environment—a body like the Council would become defunct. In a bid to improve their strategic positioning and their power in the region, the Arctic Council would remain an afterthought. Denmarks territorial claims have already come in conflict with other states. Denmark claims the North Pole as their own territory, due to them owning Greenland, however, the entire claim also infringes upon the EEZ of Russia.
What will ensue this competition and these grabs for power is the militarisation of the region. In recent years, Russia has quickly expanded their Arctic forces and in 2014 established the Northern Fleet Joint Strategic Command. The Commands primary jurisdiction spreads over the Arctic Ocean and is reportedly composed of 40 submarine and surface vessels each and two infantry brigades. The Command is ultimately envisaged to also consist of coastal defence missile systems and an air defence division.
Russia, however, is not alone. The current Canadian Government has invested in infrastructure and military equipment, bolstering their presence in the Canadian Arctic. The Canadian Minister for National Defence, Harjit Sajjan, said ‘we want to ensure we have the national defence resources that we can equip the Canadian Armed Forces so we can protect our sovereignty’ while making a trip to the northern edges of Nunavut, Canada.
These moves have thawed a once neutral relationship between the Arctic states as each country carries out their own military exercises within the region. For a long period of time the Arctic has been sanctioned solely for scientific and research activity—these moves threaten the peace and sanctity granted to the region by the Arctic states,
All this would mean is that the environment and the endurance of the Arctic ecosystem would no longer be a priority. The voice from the Indigenous peoples of the Arctic would have no weight and, with no common platform for dialogue with states, it will also go unheard. The challenge ahead for the Arctic Council and its member-states lies upon the balance between a states sovereign right to its territory and the cooperation required to conserve what is ultimately one of the last places on Earth untouched by humanity.
