CYIL Vol. 5, 2014

WHAT IS THE LEGAL REGIME OF THE ARCTIC?

5. The Arctic Council The necessity of solving various questions related to the Arctic led to the establishment of the Arctic Council 95 in 1996. This is a high-level intergovernmental forum for promoting cooperation, coordination, and interaction among the Arctic States that addresses issues faced by the Arctic. It has eight member countries: Canada, Denmark (including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States. The category of Permanent Participants has been created to provide for active participation and full consultation with representatives of the Arctic’s six indigenous groups, while the Permanent Participants category is open to other organizations of the indigenous population on the basis of equality. The founding document also counts with permanent observer states. Observer status is open to non-Arctic states and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations. The Arctic Council can be considered a form of cooperation sui generis. 96 It is not an international organization but a specific body. The acts concluded by the Council have the character of soft law ; they are not legally binding. According to the Declaration on the Establishment of the Arctic Council, decisions are taken by consensus (general agreement) of member states. On the basis of the Declaration, the Council meets regularly once every two years. Meetings of the Arctic Council take place in member states on a rotation principle. Since the founding meeting, so far eight other meetings on the ministerial level have taken place in individual Arctic states. In 1998 in Canada, in 2000 in Alaska, USA, in 2002 in Inari, Finland, in 2004 in Reykjavik, Iceland, in 2006 in Salekhard, Russia, in 2009 in Tromso, Norway, in 2011 in Greenland (Denmark) and in May 2013 in Kiruna, Sweden. The Secretariat of the Arctic Council was established during the meeting in Tromso. The objective of the Arctic Council is to promote cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic states and the indigenous population in matters of common Arctic interest , especially on issues such as sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic. The main objective of the Arctic Council is the protection of the environment of the Arctic, even though it does not restrict its activities to only these issues. However, it explicitly says in the Declaration that it will not deal with military security concerns , which were left out of its mandate. As far as recent practical activity of the Arctic Council is concerned, the Kiruna Declaration was concluded inMay 2013on the occasionof the eighthministerialmeeting of the Arctic Council. 97 The Declaration contains the issue of improving economic and social conditions. With respect to this the Council recognizes the central role of business in the development of the Arctic and makes decisions to increase cooperation and interaction with the business community to advance sustainable development in 95 Declaration on the Establishment of the Arctic Council (Ottawa, Canada 1996, available at: www. international.gc.ca/arctis-arctique/ ( accessed on 12 August 2013). 96 Wolfrum, R., op. cit. , p. 542. 97 Kiruna Declaration On the Occasion of the Eighth Ministerial Meeting of the Arctic Council. 8-15 May 2013, Kiruna Sweden, available at : www.arctic-council.org ( accessed on 12 August 2013).

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