Arctic Council Explained

Logo Alt:A logo consisting of a circular illustration of an arctic fox overlapping with a circular world map to form an infinity symbol.
Map:File:ArcticCouncil.svg
Map Size:300px
Formation: (Ottawa Declaration)
Type:Intergovernmental organization
Purpose:Forum for promoting cooperation, coordination, and interaction among the Arctic states, with the involvement of the Arctic Indigenous communities
Headquarters:Tromsø, Norway (since 2012)
Main Organ:Secretariat

The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the indigenous people of the Arcticregion. At present, eight countries exercise sovereignty over the lands within the Arctic Circle, and these constitute the member states of the council: Canada; Denmark; Finland; Iceland; Norway; Russia; Sweden; and the United States. Other countries or national groups can be admitted as observer states, while organizations representing the concerns of indigenous peoples can be admitted as indigenous permanent participants.

History

The first step towards the formation of the Council occurred in 1991 when the eight Arctic countries signed the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). The 1996 Ottawa Declaration[1] established the Arctic Council[2] as a forum for promoting cooperation, coordination, and interaction among the Arctic states, with the involvement of the Arctic Indigenous communities and other Arctic inhabitants on issues such as sustainable development and environmental protection.[3] The Arctic Council has conducted studies on climate change, oil and gas, and Arctic shipping.[4]

In 2011, the Council member states concluded the Arctic Search and Rescue Agreement, the first binding treaty concluded under the council's auspices.[5]

On March 3, 2022, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the United States declared that they will not attend meetings of the Arctic Council under Russian chairmanship because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[6] [7] The same countries issued a second statement on June 8, 2022 that declared their intent to resume cooperation on a limited number of previously approved Arctic Council projects that do not involve Russian leadership or participation.[8] [9]

Membership and participation

The council is made up of member and observer states, Indigenous "permanent participants", and observer organizations.[10]

Members

Only states with territory in the Arctic can be members of the council. The member states consist of the following:[10]

Observers

Observer status is open to non-Arctic states approved by the Council at the Ministerial Meetings that occur once every two years. Observers have no voting rights in the council. As of September 2021, thirteen non-Arctic states have observer status. Observer states receive invitations for most Council meetings. Their participation in projects and task forces within the working groups is not always possible, but this poses few problems as few observer states want to participate at such a detailed level.[11]

, observer states included:[12]

In 2011, the Council clarified its criteria for admission of observers, most notably including a requirement of applicants to "recognize Arctic States' sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the Arctic" and "recognize that an extensive legal framework applies to the Arctic Ocean including, notably, the Law of the Sea, and that this framework provides a solid foundation for responsible management of this ocean".

Pending observer status

Pending observer states need to request permission for their presence at each individual meeting; such requests are routine and most of them are granted. At the 2013 Ministerial Meeting in Kiruna, Sweden - the European Union (EU) requested full observer status. It was not granted, mostly because the members do not agree with the EU ban on hunting seals. Although the European Union has a specific Arctic policy and is active in the region, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine prevents it from reconsidering its status within the Arctic Council.[13]

The role of observers was re-evaluated, as were the criteria for admission. As a result, the distinction between permanent and ad hoc observers were dropped.[14]

Future observer status

Brazil expressed their interest for joining the Arctic Council as first non-Arctic Latin American observer.[15]

Indigenous permanent participants

Seven of the eight-member states, excluding Iceland, have indigenous communities living in their Arctic areas. Organizations of Arctic Indigenous Peoples can obtain the status of Permanent Participant to the Arctic Council, but only if they represent either one indigenous group residing in more than one Arctic State, or two or more Arctic indigenous peoples groups in a single Arctic state. The number of Permanent Participants should at any time be less than the number of members. The category of Permanent Participants has been created to provide for active participation and full consultation with the Arctic indigenous representatives within the Arctic Council. This principle applies to all meetings and activities of the Arctic Council.

Permanent Participants may address the meetings. They may raise points of order that require an immediate decision by the chairman. Agendas of Ministerial Meetings need to be consulted beforehand with them; they may propose supplementary agenda items. When calling the biannual meetings of Senior Arctic Officials, the Permanent Participants must have been consulted beforehand. Moreover, though only states have a right to vote in the Arctic Council, the permanent participants must, according to the Ottawa Declaration be fully consulted, which is close to de facto power of veto should they all reject a particular proposal.[16] This mandatory consultation process matches the consultation and free, prior and informed consent (FPIC) requirement mentioned in the United Nation Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Finally, Permanent Participants may propose cooperative activities, such as projects. All this makes the position of Arctic indigenous peoples within the Arctic Council quite influential compared to the (often marginal) role of such peoples in other international governmental fora. The status of "permanent participant" is indeed unique and enables circumpolar peoples to be seated at the same table as states' delegations while in any other international organization it is not the case. Nevertheless, decision-making in the Arctic Council remains in the hands of the eight-member states, on the basis of consensus.

As of 2023, six Arctic indigenous communities have Permanent Participant status. These groups are represented by

However prominent the role of indigenous peoples, the Permanent Participant status does not confer any legal recognition as peoples. The Ottawa Declaration, the Arctic Council's founding document, explicitly states (in a footnote):

"The use of the term 'peoples' in this declaration shall not be construed as having any implications as regard the rights which may attach to the term under international law."

The Indigenous Permanent Participants are assisted by the Arctic Council Indigenous Peoples Secretariat.[10]

Observer organizations

Approved intergovernmental organizations and Inter-parliamentary institutions (both global and regional), as well as non-governmental organizations can also obtain Observer Status.[12]

Organizations with observer status currently include the Arctic Parliamentarians,[23] International Union for Conservation of Nature, the International Red Cross Federation, the Nordic Council, the Northern Forum,[24] United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme; the Association of World Reindeer Herders,[25] Oceana,[26] the University of the Arctic, and the World Wide Fund for Nature-Arctic Programme.

Administrative aspects

Meetings

The Arctic Council convenes every six months somewhere in the Chair's country for a Senior Arctic Officials (SAO) meeting. SAOs are high-level representatives from the eight-member nations. Sometimes they are ambassadors, but often they are senior foreign ministry officials entrusted with staff-level coordination. Representatives of the six Permanent Participants and the official Observers also are in attendance.

At the end of the two-year cycle, the Chair hosts a Ministerial-level meeting, which is the culmination of the council's work for that period. Most of the eight-member nations are represented by a Minister from their Foreign Affairs, Northern Affairs, or Environment Ministry.

A formal, although non-binding, "Declaration", named for the town in which the meeting is held, sums up the past accomplishments and the future work of the council. These Declarations cover climate change, sustainable development, Arctic monitoring and assessment, persistent organic pollutants and other contaminants, and the work of the council's five Working Groups.

Arctic Council members agreed to action points on protecting the Arctic but most have never materialized.[27]

List of Arctic Council Ministerial Meetings
data-sort-type=date align=left Date(s)align=left Cityalign=left Country
17–18 September 1998IqaluitCanada
13 October 2000BarrowUnited States
10 October 2002InariFinland
24 November 2004ReykjavíkIceland
26 October 2006SalekhardRussia
29 April 2009TromsøNorway
12 May 2011NuukGreenland, Denmark
15 May 2013KirunaSweden
24 April 2015IqaluitCanada
10–11 May 2017FairbanksUnited States
7 May 2019RovaniemiFinland
19–20 May 2021ReykjavíkIceland

Chairmanship

Chairmanship of the Council rotates every two years.[28] The current chair is Norway, which serves until the Ministerial meeting in 2025.[29]

Norway, Denmark, and Sweden have agreed on a set of common priorities for the three chairmanships. They also agreed to a shared secretariat 2006–2013.[32]

The secretariat

Each rotating Chair nation accepts responsibility for maintaining the secretariat, which handles the administrative aspects of the council, including organizing semiannual meetings, hosting the website, and distributing reports and documents. The Norwegian Polar Institute hosted the Arctic Council Secretariat for the six-year period from 2007 to 2013; this was based on an agreement between the three successive Scandinavian Chairs, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden. This temporary Secretariat had a staff of three.

In 2012, the Council moved towards creating a permanent secretariat in Tromsø, Norway.[38]

Past directors

The Indigenous Peoples' Secretariat

See main article: Arctic Council Indigenous Peoples Secretariat. It is costly for the Permanent participants to be represented at every Council meeting, especially since they take place across the entire circumpolar realm. To enhance the capacity of the PPs to pursue the objectives of the Arctic Council and to assist them to develop their internal capacity to participate and intervene in Council meetings, the Council provides financial support to the Indigenous Peoples' Secretariat (IPS).[41]

The IPS board decides on the allocation of the funds. The IPS was established in 1994 under the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS). It was based in Copenhagen until 2016 when it relocated to Tromsø.

In September 2017, Anna Degteva replaced Elle Merete Omma as the executive secretary for the Indigenous Peoples´ Secretariat.[42]

Working groups, programs and action plans

Arctic Council working groups document Arctic problems and challenges such as sea ice loss, glacier melting, tundra thawing, increase of mercury in food chains, and ocean acidification affecting the entire marine ecosystem.

The six Arctic Council workings groups:

Programs and action plans

Security and geopolitical issues

See main article: Territorial claims in the Arctic. Before signing the Ottawa Declaration, a footnote was added stating; "The Arctic Council should not deal with matters related to military security".[51] In 2019, United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stated that circumstances had changed and "the region has become an arena for power and for competition. And the eight Arctic states must adapt to this new future".[52] The council is often in the middle of security and geopolitical issues since the Arctic has peculiar interests to Member States and Observers. Changes in the Arctic environment and participants of the Arctic Council have led to a reconsideration of the relationship between geopolitical matters and the role of the Arctic Council.

Disputes over land and ocean in the Arctic had been extremely limited. The only outstanding land dispute was between Canada and Denmark, the Whisky War, over Hans Island, which was resolved in the summer of 2022 with agreement to split the island in half.[53] There are oceanic claims between the United States and Canada in the Beaufort Sea.[54] [55]

The major territorial disputes are over exclusive rights to the seabed under the central Arctic high seas. Due to climate change and melting of the Arctic sea-ice, more energy resources and waterways are now becoming accessible. Large reserves of oil, gas and minerals are located within the Arctic. This environmental factor generated territorial disputes among member states. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea allows states to extend their exclusive right to exploit resources on and in the continental shelf if they can prove that seabed more than 200nmi from baselines is a "natural prolongation" of the land. Canada, Russia, and Denmark (via Greenland) have all submitted partially overlapping claims to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), which is charged with confirming the continental shelf's outer limits. Once the CLCS makes its rulings, Russia, Denmark, and Canada will need to negotiate to divide their overlapping claims.[56]

Disputes also exist over the nature of the Northwest Passage and the Northeast Passage / Northern Sea Route. Canada claims the entire Northwest Passage are Canadian Internal Waters, which means Canada would have total control over which ships may enter the channel. The United States believes the Passage is an international strait, which would mean any ship could transit at any time, and Canada could not close the Passage. Russia's claims over the Northern Sea Route are significantly different. Russia only claims small segments of the Northern Sea Route around straits as internal waters. However, Russia requires all commercial vessels to request and obtain permission to navigate in a large area of the Russian Arctic exclusive economic zone under Article 234 of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which grants coastal states greater powers over ice-covered waters.

Canadian sovereignty over the Northwest Passage arouses substantial public concern in Canada. A poll indicated that half of Canadian respondents said Canada should try to assert its full sovereignty rights over the Beaufort Sea compared to just 10 percent of Americans.[57] New commercial trans-Arctic shipping routes can be another factor of conflicts. A poll found that Canadians perceive the Northwest Passage as their internal Canadian waterway whereas other countries assert it is an international waterway.[57]

The increase in the number of observer states drew attention to other national security issues. Observers have demonstrated their interests in the Arctic region. China has explicitly shown its desire to extract natural resources in Greenland.[58]

Military infrastructure is another point to consider. Canada, Denmark, Norway and Russia are rapidly increasing their defence presence by building up their militaries in the Arctic and developing their building infrastructure.[59]

However, some say that the Arctic Council facilitates stability despite possible conflicts among member states. Norwegian Admiral Haakon Bruun-Hanssen has suggested that the Arctic is "probably the most stable area in the world". They say that laws are well established and followed.[58] Member states think that the sharing cost of the development of Arctic shipping-lanes, research, etc., by cooperation and good relationships between states is beneficial to all.[60]

Looking at these two different perspectives, some suggest that the Arctic Council should expand its role by including peace and security issues as its agenda. A 2010 survey showed that large majorities of respondents in Norway, Canada, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark were very supportive on the issues of an Arctic nuclear-weapons free zone.[61] Although only a small majority of Russian respondents supported such measures, more than 80 percent of them agreed that the Arctic Council should cover peace-building issues.[62] Paul Berkman suggests that solving security matters in the Arctic Council could save members the much larger amount of time required to reach a decision in United Nations. However, as of June 2014, military security matters are often avoided.[63] The focus on science and resource protection and management is seen as a priority, which could be diluted or strained by the discussion of geopolitical security issues.[64]

See also

Bibliography

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Arctic Council: Founding Documents. Arctic Council Document Archive. 2013-09-05.
  2. Web site: Axworthy. Thomas S.. Canada bypasses key players in Arctic meeting. The Toronto Star. March 29, 2010. 2013-09-05.
  3. Web site: Savage. Luiza Ch.. Why everyone wants a piece of the Arctic. Maclean's. Rogers Digital Media. May 13, 2013. 2013-09-05.
  4. Lawson W Brigham . September–October 2021 . Think Again: The Arctic . https://web.archive.org/web/20131013051820/https://foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/08/16/think_again_the_arctic?page=full . 2013-10-13 . Foreign Policy . 2013-09-24.
  5. News: Koring. Paul. Arctic treaty leaves much undecided. 2011-05-13. The Globe and Mail. 12 May 2011.
  6. Web site: 3 March 2022 . Joint Statement on Arctic Council Cooperation following Russia's Invasion of Ukraine . 3 March 2022.
  7. Web site: Canada, six other states pull back from Arctic Council in protest over Ukraine. ctvnews.ca. 3 March 2022. live. 4 March 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220304121942/https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/canada-six-other-states-pull-back-from-arctic-council-in-protest-over-ukraine-1.5804272.
  8. Web site: Canada . Global Affairs . 2022-06-08 . Joint statement on limited resumption of Arctic Council cooperation . 2022-07-24 . www.canada.ca.
  9. News: Schreiber . Melody . 2022-06-08 . Arctic Council nations to resume limited cooperation — without Russia . 2022-07-24 . ArcticToday . en-US.
  10. Web site: About the Arctic Council. The Arctic Council. April 7, 2011. September 17, 2021.
  11. Web site: Ghattas. Kim . Arctic Council: John Kerry steps into Arctic diplomacy. Bbc.co.uk. 2013-05-14. 2013-09-24.
  12. Web site: Observers. Arctic Council Secretariat (2021). Arctic Council. September 15, 2021.
  13. Morcillo Pazos, Adrián & López Coca, Pau (2022). Comparison of EU and Chinese policies in the Arctic : new challenges in the Arctic after the Ukraine war. Quaderns IEE, Vol. 1, Nº. 2, pp. 87-114. https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=8570467
  14. Web site: The EU and the Arctic Council. April 20, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20181117004519/https://www.ecfr.eu/article/commentary_the_eu_and_the_arctic_council3005 . November 17, 2018.
  15. Web site: Brazilian ambassador to Russia: Brazil plans to become an observer country in the Arctic Council . arctic.ru . 25 January 2023 . 22 May 2024.
  16. Koivurova, T., & Heinämäki, L. (2006). The participation of indigenous peoples in international norm-making in the Arctic. Polar Record, 42(2), 101-109.
  17. Web site: Aleut International Association . Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  18. Web site: Arctic Athabaskan Council . Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  19. Web site: Gwich'in Council International . Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  20. Web site: Gwich'in Council International . Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  21. Web site: Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North . Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  22. Web site: Saami Council. Arctic Council. September 17, 2021.
  23. Web site: Arctic Parliamentarians. Arcticparl.org. 2013-09-24.
  24. Web site: Northern Forum. Northern Forum. 2013-09-24.
  25. Web site: Association of World Reindeer Herders. https://web.archive.org/web/20070928200138/http://arcticportal.org/portal/icr-new/assn.-of-world-reindeer-herders. dead. September 28, 2007.
  26. Web site: The Arctic Council.
  27. http://www.greenpeace.org/international/Global/international/publications/climate/2011/Press%20briefing%20Arctic%20Council%20Annual%20Meeting.pdf Press briefing, Arctic Council Annual Meeting, Nuuk May 2011 Stop talking – start protecting
  28. Web site: Troniak. Shauna. Canada as Chair of the Arctic Council. HillNotes. Library of Parliament Research Publications. May 1, 2013. 2013-09-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20130629023119/http://parl.gc.ca/Content/LOP/ResearchPublications/2013-20-e.htm. 2013-06-29. dead.
  29. Web site: Norway Chairs Arctic Council. 2023-05-12.
  30. Web site: Canadian Chairmanship Program 2013–2015 . Arctic Council . en-gb. 2018-01-22.
  31. News: Secretary Tillerson Chairs 10th Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting. U.S. Department of State. 2018-01-22. en-US.
  32. Web site: Arctic Council Secretariat . Arctic Council . en-gb. 2018-01-22.
  33. 2009-04-29. The Kingdom of Denmark. Chairmanship of the Arctic Council 2009–2011 . Arctic Council . en.
  34. Web site: Council of American Ambassadors. Council of American Ambassadors. 2018-01-22.
  35. Web site: Category: About . The Norwegian, Danish, Swedish common objectives for their Arctic Council chairmanships 2006–2013 . Arctic Council . 2011-04-07 . 2013-09-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130927012035/http://www.arctic-council.org/index.php/en/about-us/arctic-council/about-arctic-council . 2013-09-27.
  36. Web site: The Arctic Council. Arctic Council.
  37. Web site: Finland's Chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2017–2019. Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
  38. Web site: Travel of Deputy Secretary Burns to Sweden and Estonia . State.gov . 2012-05-14 . 2013-09-24.
  39. Web site: Secretariat . Arctic Council . Arctic Council Secretariat annual report 2017 . en . 2018.
  40. Web site: Introducing Mathieu Parker: The new director of the Arctic Council Secretariat . Arctic Council . en.
  41. Web site: Terms, Reference and Guidelines. https://web.archive.org/web/20110720000949/http://arctic-council.org/filearchive/IPS%20Terms%20of%20Reference%20and%20Guidelines.pdf. dead. 2011-07-20.
  42. Web site: Arctic Council Secretariat . Arctic Council Secretariat annual report 2017 . en . 2018.
  43. Web site: Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme. Amap.no . 2013-09-24.
  44. Web site: Conservation of Arctic Flora & Fauna (CAFF). Caff.is. Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna. 2013-09-24.
  45. Web site: Emergency Prevention, Preparedness & Response. Eppr.arctic-council.org. 2013-06-04. 2013-09-24.
  46. Web site: Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment. Pame.is. 2013-06-13. 2013-09-24.
  47. Web site: Oops! We couldn't find this page for you. Arctic Portal.
  48. Web site: Sustainable Development Working Group. Portal.sdwg.org. 2013-08-27. 2013-09-24. 2013-01-14. https://web.archive.org/web/20130114204240/http://portal.sdwg.org/. dead.
  49. Web site: Arctic Contaminants Action Program (ACAP). Acap.arctic-council.org. 2013-09-24.
  50. http://caff.arcticportal.org/aba Arctic Biodiversity Assessment
  51. Web site: Declaration on the Establishment of the Arctic Council (Ottawa, Canada, 1996). May 10, 2017. September 17, 2021.
  52. Presence before power: why China became a near-Arctic state . Dams . Ties . van Schaik . Louise . 2020 . Clingendael Institute . 6–19 . resrep24677.5 . Stoetman . Adája . free.
  53. Web site: Canada and the Kingdom of Denmark, together with Greenland, reach historic agreement on long-standing boundary disputes . Government of Canada . June 14, 2022 . September 11, 2022.
  54. Web site: Transnational Issues CIA World Fact Book. CIA. 2012-01-10.
  55. Web site: Sea Changes. https://web.archive.org/web/20070613215643/http://www.institutenorth.org/servlet/download?id=35 . June 13, 2007.
  56. Web site: Overfield . Cornell . An Off-the-Shelf Guide to Extended Continental Shelves and the Arctic . Lawfare . April 21, 2021 . 2021-08-07.
  57. News: Jill Mahoney . Canadians rank Arctic sovereignty as top foreign-policy priority . The Globe and Mail . 2013-09-24.
  58. News: Outsiders in the Arctic: The roar of ice cracking . The Economist . 2013-02-02 . 2013-09-24.
  59. Web site: The Arctic: Five Critical Security Challenges | ASPAmerican Security Project . Americansecurityproject.org . 2013-09-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130927012708/http://americansecurityproject.org/featured-items/2013/the-arctic-five-critical-security-challenges/ . 2013-09-27 . dead.
  60. News: Arctic politics: Cosy amid the thaw . The Economist . 2012-03-24 . 2013-09-24.
  61. https://munkschool.utoronto.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/ArcticCouncil_GordonFoundation_2011.pdf Rethinking the Top of the World: Arctic Security Public Opinion Survey
  62. News: Janice Gross Stein And Thomas S. Axworthy . The Arctic Council is the best way for Canada to resolve its territorial disputes . The Globe and Mail . 2013-09-24.
  63. Berkman. Paul. Stability and Peace in the Arctic Ocean through Science Diplomacy. Science & Diplomacy. 2014-06-23. 3. 2.
  64. Web site: U.S.-Russia Relations Are Frosty But They're Toasty On The Arctic Council. npr.org. 2016-06-16.