Arctic Council Meeting

On the eve of an Arctic Council meeting of Foreign Ministers, the US has expressed concerns about increased military activities in the Arctic. This comes after Russia defended its military activities in the strategic region.

Potential Concerns

  • As climate change makes the Arctic more accessible, interest in the region's natural resources, its navigation routes and its strategic position has grown among countries bordering the Arctic as well as China.
  • Increased military activities in the Arctic increase the dangers or prospects of accidents and undermines the shared goal of a peaceful and sustainable future for the region.

About Arctic Council

  • It is an Intergovernmental forum which addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and people living in the Arctic region.
  • It is a non-treaty-based international organization but rather an international forum that operates on the basis of consensus.
  • The decisions, recommendations or guidelines of the Arctic Council are non-enforceable and strictly the prerogative of the individual state.
  • Its mandate explicitly excludes military security.

Members

  • The 1996 Ottawa Declaration lists the following countries as Members of the Arctic Council: Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the United States.
  • In addition, six organizations representing Arctic indigenous peoples have status as Permanent Participants. They include: the Aleut International Association, the Arctic Athabaskan Council, Gwich’in Council International, the Inuit Circumpolar Council, Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North and the Saami Council.
  • The ‘observer’ status in the Arctic Council is open to non-Arctic states along with inter-governmental, inter-parliamentary, global, regional, and non-governmental organizations that the Council determines can contribute to its work.

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