European Union and Cooperation in the Arctic Council
Journal Title: Arctic and North - Year 2021, Vol 45, Issue 45
Abstract
Since 2008, the European Union has unsuccessfully tried to obtain permanent observer status in the Arctic Council, the central cooperation forum in the Arctic. The analysis shows that the EU's failures in this area are connected both with its location mostly outside of the region and remoteness from the northern realities, as well as global geopolitical tensions. However, the EU has had de facto observer ad hoc status since 2013, allowing it to participate in almost all formats of interaction in the Arctic Council. Considering this fact, the permanent observer status has rather a symbolic meaning and is equivalent to joining a kind of “privileged Arctic club”. An analysis of the EU's functioning in its relations with the Arctic Council and its members shows that the EU is ready to adapt and listen to the opinion of the Arctic countries in order to become a legitimate Arctic actor. The Arctic Council is of uneven importance for the different EU member states: Denmark, Finland and Sweden are full members, several countries are permanent observers, but most EU countries are not interested in the Arctic issues. Because of this multifaceted nature, the collective EU is more of an extra-regional player on the platform, but one with serious Arctic claims. The EU is actively working on a common Arctic policy. It is represented in the Arctic Council by the Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs, introduced in 2017, who acts in coordination with the European Commission and the member states concerned. The EU's overall approach is not unsuccessful: it has managed to engage more member states on the Arctic vector, and European expertise and input on sustainable development issues is already becoming an integral part of the AC's work and promises to evolve further.
Authors and Affiliations
Kirgizov-Barskiy A. V.
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP699792
- DOI 10.37482/issn2221-2698.2021.45.75
- Views 114
- Downloads 0
Analysis of Participation of Banking Institutions in the Strategic Development Programs of the Russian Arctic
The article examines the issues of financing the development of the Russian Arctic territories and the participation of banking structures in this process. A set of strategic documents for the development of the Arctic z...
Regional Linguistic Worldview Modelling Based on the Texts of Arctic Travels of the 18th – 19th Centuries
The article considers texts of scientists and public figures of the second half of the 18th–19th centuries, who wrote travel essays on the natural-climatic and historical-cultural peculiarities, social and daily life of...
Regional Specifics of Municipal Solid Waste Management in Arctic Regions of the Russian Federation
The article analyzes the regional specifics of solid municipal waste management in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation. The relevance of the topic is determined by the need to analyze the regional specifics of soli...
Eastern Murman: Social Aspects of Colonization in the Materials of Expeditions and Travel Notes of the 2nd Half of the 19th — Early 20th Centuries
The article discusses several social aspects of the colonization of Eastern Murman (everyday life, daily work, religious beliefs, schooling, leisure). The historiographic analysis made it possible to identify the specifi...
Prevention and Resolution of Constitutional Conflicts in the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation
Stable development and security of the Arctic zone of Russia demand effective resolution and prevention of conflicts. The purpose of this study is to determine the main parameters of the legal model for the prevention an...