A Warmer Welcome
THE ECONOMIST
Arctic diplomacy
The Arctic Council admits its first permanent Asian observers
May 18th 2013 |From the print edition
SINCE its formation in 1996, the Arctic Council’s eight member states have formed a cosy club. Their deliberations on research and conservation attracted little attention outside the frozen North. Relations are so warm that diplomats indulged in a spontaneous group hug on a joint trip to the North Pole in April.
Only states with territory in the Arctic can be full members (see map). But as melting polar ice has opened up the region to shipping, fishing, oil, gas and mineral extraction—and even tourism—countries as far away as Singapore are claiming a stake in its ice caps. The Arctic “used to be the last frontier,” said Kuupik Kleist, a former prime minister of Greenland, speaking at a recent conference organised by the Brookings Institution, a think-tank. “Now it seems like we are the centre of the world.”
At their biennial meeting on May 15th in the Swedish city of Kiruna, its foreign ministers agreed that China, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea and Singapore could become permanent observers, joining 26 current ones. But they denied that status to all international groups that applied, including NGOs such as Greenpeace. The EU’s admittance was postponed, pending talks with Canada.
China, which describes itself as a “near-Arctic state”, had been vying for a permanent observer’s place since 2006 (it was turned down three times). Admitting new observers now is “politically shrewd”, thinks Mihaela David of the Arctic Institute, a research body. It will prevent big Arctic discussions migrating to fuzzier alternative forums, such as the Arctic Circle, announced in April, which is backed by the president of Iceland.
A long-standing gripe marred the EU’s bid, which was obstructed by Inuit (an indigenous Arctic people) who oppose its near-total ban on trading seal products. Inuit groups must be consulted by council ministers. Their sway is greater now that Leona Aglukkaq, an Inuk, has become Canada’s representative and the council’s chair for the next two years. She said the seal ban was “dear” to her. Inuit groups presented a “No Seal No Deal” petition to the meeting. Greenpeace’s hostility to polar-bear hunting and seal-harvesting no doubt hampered its chances, too.
Most of the new joiners were already observers on an ad hoc basis. Their clout will continue to be limited: they cannot speak or vote. But with their expertise and money, they could influence decisions in the council’s six working groups. China, for example, has led five marine expeditions in the Arctic since 1999, including one last year. Japan and South Korea own powerful icebreakers, which allow them to conduct their own exploratory ventures and support those by other states and organisations. Observers can also suggest projects and pay for them.
The council’s new openness is likely to work in its favour. Members signed a binding agreement on responding to marine oil spills, only the second such deal in its history. More may follow as Asian observers bring new ideas, rather than making meetings unwieldy, as Canada fears. A new permanent secretariat in Tromso, Norway, will help. Stand by for a big, if complicated, group hug in 2015.
