The Arctic as an issue of international cooperation

• Main Author: Symonides, Michał
• Other Authors: Pacte, Laboratoire de sciences sociales (PACTE), Sciences Po Grenoble - Institut d'études politiques de Grenoble (IEPG)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Grenoble Alpes 2016-2019 (UGA 2016-2019 ), Université Grenoble Alpes, Franck Petiteville
• Format: Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis
• Language: French
• Published: HAL CCSD 2018
• Subjects: Regional cooperation; Governance; Multilevel cooperation; International cooperation; Arctic; Coopération internationale; Coopération multiniveaux; Coopération régionale; Gouvernance; Arctique; [SHS.SCIPO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Political science; Arctic Council; Arctique*; Climate change; Global warming; Law of the Sea
• Online Access: https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02154821; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02154821/document; https://tel.archives-ouvertes.fr/tel-02154821/file/SYMONIDES_2018_diffusion.pdf

The interest in the Arctic has grown through the environmental issues and climate change that deeply altered the region, especially with the impact of the global warming. These changes bring many threats but also important opportunities, and require a deeper cooperation to respond to them. The protection of the environment, the management of Arctic resources (natural, fishery, etc.), the use of sea routes, the delimitation of maritime boundaries, the respect of human rights and of indigenous peoples rights, the strategic and military aspects are all examples of the issues that coexist in the Arctic. They highlight the challenges that the cooperation in the Arctic is facing. None of these issues could solely be managed by the cooperation between the Arctic States, as their consequences and the interests at stake are global. In addition to the multitude of areas of cooperation, there is a congruence of actors: Arctic and extra-Arctic ones such as international organizations, non-governmental organizations, multinational corporations, but also regions, inter-parliamentary organizations, indigenous peoples or scientific associations. The complexity of the situation is perceptible in the way the Arctic cooperation is established. Tensions exist both among the Arctic actors and between Arctic and extra-Arctic actors. Two contradictory processes seem to structure the cooperation with the regionalization on the one hand, and the internationalization on the other hand. Thus, cooperation between Arctic stakeholders is built around many international institutions, which structures and roles will certainly evolve. The central structure of the Arctic cooperation is the Arctic Council – a regional institution. At the same time, the cooperation in the Arctic region is based on global international cooperations, with essential instruments as the Convention on the law of the sea of 1982. Arctic cooperation seems to be an interesting model based on flexibility that should enable adaptation, which is especially important in a ...