The Fast-Changing Arctic: Rethinking Arctic Security for a Warmer World (Jun. 2013) (original) (raw)
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This book showcases selected articles on Arctic security published in the Journal of Military and Strategic Studies (JMSS) over the last decade. By situating Canadian discussions in broader circumpolar and global contexts, the chapters in this volume provide insights into how climate change, changes in governance systems, increased shipping (and the prospect of much more), energy and mineral development, Arctic states’ expanding military presence, and growing non-Arctic state interests are interacting to create a complex, evolving Arctic security environment. Introductions to each section contextualize ongoing academic and policy debates about defence, security, and state sovereignty in the Arctic, as well as offering suggestions for further reading.
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This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the main issues related to geopolitical changes in the Arctic region, along with an overview of the scientific literature regarding these issues. After a historical analysis, the research focuses on the evolution of Arctic security, examining alleged militarization and the impact of climate change. Next, the major powers involved and their interests and strategies in the region are explored. Finally, we focus on economic enterprises and multilateralism in the area, both of which are affected by recent events and climate change.
The Arctic at the Crossroads of Geopolitical Interests
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European Security, 2021
After the Cold War, international relations in the Arctic were characterised by cooperation and diplomacy. However, since Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, largely peaceful relations in the High North have been endangered by growing military competition between Russia and Western Arctic powers. The lack of military to military dialogue between Russia and the West has exacerbated the situation. Consequently, an Arctic security dilemma has arisen, which threatens stability and increases the danger of unintended armed conflict resulting from accidents or misunderstandings. Security dilemmas are as old as international politics. They occur when states feel threatened by the expanding military capabilities of their neighbours even if there is no deliberate hostile intent. This article will examine the developing Arctic security dilemma and the chances of its mitigation. Two recent developments provide potential grounds for optimism. The new United States’ administration has pledged to return America to global engagement and multilateralism. In 2021, the Russian Federation is scheduled to become chair of the Arctic Council and the Arctic Coastguard Forum, the main intergovernmental institutions in the region. These events provide an opportunity to rebuild greater trust and confidence in relations between Russia and its Arctic neighbours and alleviate dangerous tensions
Climate Change & International Security: The Arctic as a Bellwether International
2012
While the two previous findings suggest that the Arctic states are focused on building a cooperative security environment in the region, there is a third, apparently contradictory trend toward modernizing their military forces in the Arctic. Some have already begun rebuilding their Arctic military capabilities, and most of the others are drawing up plans to do so. Consequently, if political cooperation in the region should sour, most of the Arctic nations will have forces that are prepared to compete in a hostile environment. Finding 5: Non-Arctic states and organizations seek roles in the Arctic. The EU and NATO have been examining the issues of governance and security in the Arctic. NATO's initial focus appears to be on improving coordination of security-related issues, such as search and rescue. Given the importance of the region to NATO members such as Canada, Norway and the United States, it seems likely that NATO will remain engaged in the region. The EU's interest is framed in the context of ensuring that new governance mechanisms are designed to include the interests of all European states. The EU has also issued policy statements that place a strong emphasis on protecting the environment. Separate from the EU, France has announced that it plans to provide its military with some Arctic capabilities. Although it has not expressed geopolitical interest in the Arctic, China plans to increase its scientific research activities in the region and has added a strategic studies department to its Polar Research Institute. Finding 6: Underlying causes of policy developments. The principal cause of renewed national interest in the Arctic is the increasing accessibility of Arctic waters resulting from global warming and new maritime technologies. Accessibility leads to the potential for new sea routes or the expansion of old ones, an important issue for both Russia and Canada. Western nations have focused on augmenting scientific research, environmental protection, sustainable development, and a constabulary and military presence. The United States stake in the Arctic is comparatively small, and historically it has tended to act with minimal interest in the region compared with the other Arctic states. Russia has invested tens of billions of dollars in Arctic oil projects, and its recent policy statements and actions suggest that it will act assertively to safeguard its oil wealth and position in the Arctic. Although oil and gas are less central to the core interests of the rest of the circumpolar powers, the importance of Arctic oil will grow for all nations as oil prices continue to rise and the desire for energy security grows. * This section is reproduced from Mabey, et al. (2011) under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 license. Minor modifications were made by the original author (J. Gulledge).
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The security interests of Arctic states are increasingly described as intertwined. The Arctic is seen either as a region where great power rivalries or resource wars are likely, or as a part of the world defined by cooperative traits and shared security interests. These depictions often implicitly lean on notions of a security region and regionalism, albeit without utilizing such frameworks to unpack security interactions in the Arctic. An increasing number of Arctic-focused scholars refer to the Arctic as a region in terms of security interests, but is this really the case if we make use of the different ways a security region has been outlined as an analytical tool? Leaning on different levels of analysis, this article questions several assumptions underpinning recent work on military security in the Arctic, advancing our understanding of security dynamics in the north and adding to our knowledge of security regions as a concept within international studies. It is argued that descriptions of the Arctic as a new security region are based on mixing and equating two distinct features of the region: the changing climate and related increases in economic ventures; and Russia's military build-up and regional hegemony.
THE STRATEGIC DIMENSION OF CHANGES IN THE ARCTIC SECURITY ENVIRONMENT
Bezpieczeństwo Narodowe 2023/42, 2023
Technological progress and global warming, including rising temperatures, open new transit routes in the Arctic. The availability of natural resources in the region, including oil and gas, uranium and rare earth elements, is increasing. The war caused by Russia in Ukraine also has consequences for the relations between the states in the Arctic region. The aim of the article is to show that the Arctic region is not immune to changes in global security environment. These changes not only result in a redefinition of the international balance of power. Some countries located beyond the Arctic, with supra-regional aspirations, open to new strategic and economic goals in this region. Consequently, Arctic management system is changing and diversifying. It is becoming necessary to develop a new model for managing this region, considering changes in the security environment and much wider spectrum of international actors than ever before. Link: https://www.bezpieczenstwo-narodowe.pl/pdf-170904-100499?filename=The%20strategic%20dimension.pdf
Introduction: Arctic International Relations in a Widened Security Perspective
Politik, 2017
This special issue of Politik aims to widen the debate on Arctic security relations through a more comprehensive dialogue inclusive of the many different types of security, their interactions, and their challenges by using the theoretical approach of the Copenhagen School. A better understanding of security dynamics in the circumpolar North today demands a critical analysis of those changes through a multidisciplinary and multi-modal lens. Each chapter in this special issue provides one layer of that multimodal lens of Arctic security that, together, weave a complex web of change. This special issue therefore continues to move the discourse of polar security beyond – but not excluding – the conventional debates of military capabilities and state sovereignty towards a more comprehensive definition of security, including its interacting environmental, economic, political, health and cultural dimensions.
From Frozen Desert to Maritime Domain: New Security Challenges in an Ice-Free Arctic
For the collection as a whole of four essays: For policymakers and analysts alike, the contemporary Arctic presents a particularly acute convergence of compelling problems and opportunities related to global security, foreign affairs, climate change, environmentalism, international law, energy economics, and the rights of indigenous populations. The goals of this publication are two-fold: to provide thoughtful analysis of recent developments in the Arctic both from scientific and geopolitical perspectives; and to offer careful and informed assessments of how evolving conditions in the Arctic might impact the broader global security framework and relations between the international actors involved, not to mention the region’s inhabitants and ecosystem.