It looks as if current world maps will soon become history in view of the latest developments in the Arctic. Researchers at the University of Durham in Britain have come up with a first draft map of the region. It shows how melting ice will open up new sea routes through the Northwest Passage. More importantly, however, the Durham map also depicts the accepted jurisdictional limits and the so far unresolved territorial claims made by the Arctic coastal nations of Denmark, Canada, Norway, Russia and the United States. These claims are lucrative and contentious in equal measure. In July the US Geological Survey published estimates according to which about 13 percent of the world's undiscovered petroleum reserves and roughly 30 percent of undiscovered natural gas reserves are located in the Arctic. At the same time there is a looming possibility of the Arctic becoming ice-free given that successes in combating climate change have so far been modest. This could potentially result in new conflict situations due to the better accessibility of these and other resources.



Attempts to bring about a peaceful balance of interests in the Arctic are still in their infancy. Great hopes are being pinned on the international Convention on the Law of the Sea that will be used to arbitrate between competing territorial claims. In March the EU High Representative Javier Solana together with the European Commission also argued for the need for action within the EU and called for an EU Arctic policy. The concerned littoral states, on the other hand, are attempting to uphold their jurisdiction in this matter and to achieve better coordination. These states met in Ilulissat (Greenland) in May and announced their intention of settling their claims in accordance with the principles of international maritime law. Denmark's Foreign Minister Per Stig Møller even stated that these - non binding - decisions would result in peace returning to the North Pole. Time will show whether this optimism is justified. Canada and Denmark, for instance, still have until 2013 and 2014 to submit their territorial claims to the United Nations. In view of current geological and climate-related findings their claims are hardly expected to be moderate. (Dennis Taenzler)



For more information on Arctic governance, please see http://www.arctic-council.org



For the Arctic map of the International Boundaries Research Unit at the University of Durham, please see http://www.dur.ac.uk/ibru/resources/arctic/

 

Published in: ECC-Newsletter, August 2008