| Summary: | Verkefnið er lokað The Arctic is an unusual area in political and legal sense. The main characteristic of the area is that it is dominated by maritime areas and therefore is largely dependant on international rules of the law of the sea. Because of this, the area is mainly subject to the sovereignty of the five states that have claims or locus standi in the Arctic territory, but in a limited way to other more southern states. In this paper, Arctic governance issues are raised and discussed in order to explain the matters of opinion that have been prevailing regarding the matter. The discussion contains both political and indeterminate factors that might affect Arctic development. Factors encouraging Trans- Arctic shipping are mentioned and the possible impacts of Trans-Arctic shipping on the Arctic are discussed including the need for rules or standards that reduce the danger of accidents or pollution. The possible sea routes in the Arctic are introduced and the legal ambiguities of the Russian and Canadian Arctic areas are also covered and discussed. The international legal regime on shipping is examined and the relevant instruments mentioned and their legal effect. In addition, instruments that concern the Arctic specifically are covered such as Article 234 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Instruments of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) that are specifically tailored to the Arctic are among those non-binding instruments mentioned. The Icelandic shipping law is examined in detail and the influence of Iceland‟s membership of UNCLOS, IMO and the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA) taken to consideration. Iceland‟s implementation of international rules is especially emphasized in this discussion. The measures taken by Iceland to fight pollution and marine accidents are also studied. The paper concludes that Iceland is one of the Arctic‟s main marine frontiers that may have significant effects on the development within the area and may prove to be an ...
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