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- Conflict over Arctic resources will take a decade—no impact until 2020
- No energy race in Arctic—it’s media hype—disputes will be settled through international law—expert proves
- Q: Can we say that there is a “Race for the Arctic” today
No Arctic Energy WarsNo energy wars—expert agrees Sotnikov (4/23/10, RIA Novosti, “There is no Race for the Arctic - Norwegian expert” by RIA Novosti correspondent Ivan Sotnikov interviewing Willy Ostreng-Professor and Chairman of the Research Institute Ocean Futures of Norway http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20100423/158712741.html) **Interview Q: Do some countries actually try to limit Russian activity in the Arctic? A: I see no state trying to limit Russian activities in the Arctic. This is so because all states see it in their national interest to keep the conflict potential under control to be able to harvest resources that are strategically important to their own national well-being. This is not to say that conflicts can not flare up and hamper resource exploitation in the future. But if conflicts take front stage in Arctic politics it is because two or more states cannot agree on a specific topic, and not because some states per se are out to limit Russian activities in the region. One conflict prone area concerns the legal status of the Northern Sea Route and the Northwest Passage of which the Arctic states have different views. Freedom of navigation and transit passage is here up against national control in waters claimed to be internal. To sort these differences out require fine tuned politics, subtle diplomacy, and a willingness of all parties to find pragmatic solutions. Conflict over Arctic resources will take a decade—no impact until 2020 Halpin 09-Moscow Bureau Chief of Britain's Times newspaper (5/14/09, The Times, “Russia warns of war within a decade over Arctic oil and gas riches” by Tim Halpin http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article6283130.ece) The country’s new national security strategy identified the intensifying battle for ownership of vast untapped oil and gas fields around its borders as a source of potential military conflict within a decade. “The presence and potential escalation of armed conflicts near Russia’s national borders, pending border agreements between Russia and several neighbouring nations, are the major threats to Russia’s interests and border security,” stated the document, which analysed security threats up to 2020. “In a competition for resources it cannot be ruled out that military force could be used to resolve emerging problems that would destroy the balance of forces near the borders of Russia and her allies.” No energy race in Arctic—it’s media hype—disputes will be settled through international law—expert proves Sotnikov 10 (4/23/10, RIA Novosti, “There is no Race for the Arctic - Norwegian expert” by RIA Novosti correspondent Ivan Sotnikov interviewing Willy Ostreng-Professor and Chairman of the Research Institute Ocean Futures of Norway http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20100423/158712741.html) **Interview Willy Ostreng, Professor and Chairman of the Research Institute Ocean Futures from Oslo, Norway, discusses the Arctic’s natural resources and heated issues in the region with RIA Novosti correspondent Ivan Sotnikov. Q: Can we say that there is a “Race for the Arctic” today? A: In my mind, there is no serious Race for the Arctic. This is to a large extent a misconception created mostly by media. In light of the sea ice melt, what we see these days, and probably will see more of in the future, is a steadily mounting multilateral interest for the rich deposits of Arctic resources, in particular oil and gas. The very concept of a Race presupposes that there is something to race for - something that does not belong to anybody and that will be the property of the first party to cross the finish line - and that will happen at the expense of the other “runners.” But what is there to be acquired in the Arctic that does not already belong to someone, and who are the runners? When it comes to resources, the ownership is already settled in compliance with international law. The resources located on land and on the continental shelf , or 350 n.m from the baselines, are the possessions of the coastal states. Within the continental shelves there are two kinds of sea bed areas that still have an uncertain status and that may contain resources of a certain value. The first seabed area concerns the location of the boundaries between the continental shelf and the deep sea bed of the Central Arctic Basin. Here all coastal states apply the rules and procedures prescribed in the Law of the Sea Convention of 1982 and use the to help out. This is not a matter of politics and/or resource race, but a matter of submitting sufficient geological quality data to the UN Continental Shelf Commission, which will help out in defining the exact border. The other uncertainties remaining relate to the sea bed areas between adjacent states, for instance in the Barents Sea between Norway and Russia. The two countries have been negotiating on and off to find a delimitation line for 36 years without yet reaching full agreement. The parties claim that they agree on approximately 80% of the delimitation line, and that none of them are in a hurry to find a solution. What both parties apply is patience, a lot of time and the strategy of small steps. The same applies to most of the other outstanding border disputes in the Arctic Ocean waiting for a final solution. If this is a race for resources, it is the race of turtles, not of hares. When the parties reach a final agreement they have shared the disputed area and non-Arctic-states have no access unless they are invited to take part by the coastal states. The only seabed area that do not sort under national jurisdiction is located to the Central Arctic Basin which according to the Law of the Sea Conventions, is the common heritage of mankind - the collective property of humankind - an area belonging to all. Why race to an area that you already have a share in, that will not be open for resource exploration and exploitation for decade to come due to the ice cover and that is poorly researched when it comes to resources? In short: The bulk of Arctic resources already sort under national jurisdiction. Access to these resources for third parties can only be achieved through cooperation with the proprietors of the resources. This does not an invitation for a race, but for international cooperation. Directory: files files -> Answer True False 2 points Question 2 files -> Integer programming and game theory files -> 4 Integer Programming files -> Bpa vehicle Window Repair Scenario #1 task: Procure vehicle window relacement. Objective files -> Pop Warner History files -> North Carolina Inclusion Initiative Mapping Where Children with ieps are Being Served Purpose files -> Fall 2013 Spring 2014 Program Data: Standard 1 Exhibit 4d files -> Hanban – asia society confucius classrooms network 2010 request for proposal files -> Northern England’s set-jetting locations Download 0.66 Mb. Share with your friends:
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