Homeland Security and the Arctic

Since the end of the Cold War, the mantra of ‘High North, low tensions’ has been at the centre of scholarly and policy debate about the world’s most northerly region. In 1996, the Arctic Council was founded. This pioneering intergovernmental forum provided a space for “cooperation, coordination and interaction” between the eight recognised Arctic States. These states – Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden, and the United States – have, alongside Arctic indigenous communities and Arctic inhabitants, taken action on specific ‘Arctic issues’, including but not limited to, sustainable development, indigenous rights, and environmental protection. As the global climate emergency unfolds, this forum has never been more important. There is, however, one telling gap in the Arctic Council’s remit; national security.