Un paradigme arctique de sécurité ? Pour une lecture géopolitique du complexe régional de sécurité.

• Published in: L’Espace Politique
• Main Authors: Pauline Pic, Frédéric Lasserre
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; French
• Published: Université de Reims Champagne-Ardennes 2018
• Subjects: geopolitics; security; Arctic; regional security complex; climate change; Political science; J; Political science (General); JA1-92; Hans Island; Arctique*; Climate change
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.4000/espacepolitique.4475; https://doaj.org/article/1a4625eeabbf445386718ac66b04c925

Security in the Arctic is regularly mentionned as a major issue. It was a strategic hotspot during the Cold War, but inherited analitycal frames tend to be less relevant. Terrestrial boundary issues are now limited to the small unhabited rock that is Hans Island, maritime boundaries are being negociated under the legal frame of the Montego Bay Convention. Yet, new security challenges are emerging now that the region is undergoing major transformations. The progressive opening-up of the ocean opens new perspectives, both economic and political. From climate change to a progressive economic integration to global networks, security issues are therefore to be completely rethought. Analyzing litterature tackling security issues in the Arctic, this paper aims at understanding what are the main drivers to srategic shifts in security policies in the Arctic region. Following a brief historical overview of security issues in the region, the paper analyzes security discourses in the region through the main analytical frames of Security studies. It finally underlines that even tough security studies usually belong to the realm of International Relations and Political Science, however, some recent publications are starting to put forward a territorial approach to security issues. This paper would like to underline the relevance of a geopolitical approach regarding the Arctic region specifically, given the major changes that the region is going through currently.