Who Owns the Arctic?

NATO chief cautions against Arctic divisions

Randy Boswell, Canwest News Service, January 29, 2009

The head of NATO has cautioned the alliance's Arctic nations - including Canada and the U.S. - to stay united despite the growing potential for conflicts among NATO members over energy resources and shipping rights in the increasingly open waters surrounding the North Pole. ...

For the full text, see: NATO chief cautions against Arctic divisions

NATO shows enhanced interest in Arctic

BarentsObserver.com , January 16, 2009

“Important changes are under way in the High North which will have a broad impact on international affairs”, NATO says in a press release. In late January, the alliance will hold a meeting on its Arctic challenges in Reikjavik, Iceland.

“The economic interests are reflected in a growing global awareness in the region, competing claims by relevant stakeholders, and resumed military presence in the area. As it is a region of enduring strategic importance for NATO and allied security, developments in the High North require careful and ongoing examination”, the press release continues.

The Russian newspaper Rossiiskaya Gazeta meanwhile describes the enhanced NATO focus on the region as a sign of a colder political climate in the Arctic and believes the Arctic eventually will become the scene for long-term military adventures.

“[…] It is clear that without the military component, the foreign policy strategy of the alliance will not succeed”, journalist Yevgenii Shestakov writes for the newspaper. “If it does not happen now, it will definitely happen in the near future”, he adds.

Norway, which has the High North on top of both its domestic and foreign policy agenda, has long advocated a stronger NATO presence in the region. As BarentsObserver reported, Norwegian Defence Minister in her recent speech to the Oslo Military Society stressed Norway’s intent to engage NATO in the High North, and to a certain extent admitted that the alliance now is persuaded to look towards the region.

Norway and Iceland sign border treaty

BarentsObserver.com , November 5, 2008

This week Norway and Iceland signed a treaty which outlines the framework of oil and gas exploration on the continental shelf between Jan Mayen and Iceland.

Norwegian minister of Foreign Affaires, Jonas Gahr Støre, says to Fiskeribladet Fiskaren that Norway has worked closely with Iceland in finding oil and gas resources on the continental shelf. The treaty signed this week outlines an agreement in the border areas between Iceland and the Norwegian iceland of Jan Mayen.

Iceland is planning to open areas in the north-eastern part of its continental shelf called the "Northern Dreki Area", for oil and gas exploration.

– The treaty gives us predictability and a good framework for both government officials and commercial companies exploring the area, says Støre.

A treaty from 1981 gives Norway the right to a 25 percent participation in a limited part of Iceland's continental shelf. The new treaty clarifies better the terms in the 1981 agreement.

The new treaty is signed only three days after the Norwegian Bank gave the Icelandic Government a loan of approximately 1 million EUR. The loan is a part of Norway’s support to Iceland in their struggle to turn around the financial crisis the country are going trough.