Abstract
The effects of global climate change for the Arctic Ocean are momentous. New aspirations arise in light of global needs for resources and transport routes. This has mobilized calls for political vision and innovation, in order to provide for timely measures to protect the environment and the livelihoods of indigenous and other people. Warnings about looming conflict or confrontation in the Arctic Ocean have also been issued. However, the latter have not been grounded in a thorough analysis of the existing legal framework and the scope and depth of on-going cooperation by coastal States in that area. Nor have calls for new legal frameworks drawn on a clear understanding of the role and potentialities of the comprehensive legal framework already applicable to the Arctic Ocean. Legal analysis is necessary in a complex, globalized world also in order to formulate effective policies. The focus of the article is on the existing legal framework and its possibilities. The international law of the sea has a particularly practical import for the identification and timely adoption of measures to resolve concrete issues and promote international cooperation across boundaries. The role and interplay of various institutions will also be illustrated. This includes the key policy role in several contexts of the Arctic Council, which is the high level forum for cooperation in the Arctic.
Hon. Rolf Einar Fife’s own background is that of a government lawyer and diplomat of one of the coastal States surrounding the central Arctic Ocean. While the article draws upon examples from the development of national legislation and international rules, policy formulation, negotiations and other activities related to oceans affairs, it does not constitute a statement of the views of the Government of Norway and the author remains solely responsible for it.
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Fife, R.E. (2013). Cooperation Across Boundaries in the Arctic Ocean: The Legal Framework and the Development of Policies. In: Berkman, P., Vylegzhanin, A. (eds) Environmental Security in the Arctic Ocean. NATO Science for Peace and Security Series C: Environmental Security. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4713-5_30
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