At the end of September, all eyes were on New York, where world leaders gathered for the UN General Assembly. Not everyone caught what was happening on the sidelines. On the evening of Friday 27 September, foreign ministers and diplomats from Canada, Norway and the other Nordic countries, including Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap), sat down for dinner in the big city. The next day they hopped on a plane bound for Iqaluit, a remote small town on Baffin Island, in the far northeast of Canada. “A process” The meetings were part of the first Canadian-Nordic security dialogue, according to Canadian Foreign Affairs. What the collaboration will consist of has still not been decided. But it must be security-political, not military, and take place outside NATO and the Arctic Council. Officially, the United States is not involved. Representatives of the Nordic countries and Canada in New York on 27 October. Top from left: State Secretary to Finland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Pasi Rajala, Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard. Bottom from left: Iceland’s Foreign Minister Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir, Canada’s Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly and Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide (Ap). Photo: Canadian Foreign Affairs / X – Exactly what form it will take is still a process. Concept papers are still being exchanged, says State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Eivind Vad Petersson (Ap), to news. He emphasizes that Norway is positive about the initiative. And that it is important to have a dialogue on security policy with allies in the Arctic, something Canada has not previously been an active promoter of. – For Norway and this government, the northern areas are our most important strategic area of interest, says Petersson. State Secretary in the Foreign Ministry, Eivind Vad Petersson, says Norway is positive about security policy cooperation with Canada and the other Nordic countries. – It is where Norway primarily meets the world. Then we need close contact and consultations with our closest allies. Several are interested in the Arctic Ukraine war, threats from Russia, the population of the Arctic, defense and energy policy were among the topics on the agenda during the meetings in September. The countries said so in a joint statement. – It is simply about sharing information and analysis about what is happening in our parts of the Arctic, explains Petersson. Iqaluit is located in the far northwest of Canada, on Baffin Island. He adds that this is happening at a time of increased tension and unrest, particularly related to the relationship between the West and Russia. At the same time, climate change is leading to ice melting and more civil and military ship traffic in the Arctic. – It is also about other countries’ interests in the Arctic and our handling of it, says Petersson. China is among the countries that have a great interest in the opportunities that climate change brings. They have previously declared themselves a “near-Arctic state”. Wanting to keep allies outside news has asked the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs if they can say more about the status of the negotiations and what form the collaboration will take. They do not answer the questions, but write in an email to news that the initiative is a way of “entering into a deeper security dialogue with like-minded states in the Arctic”. Espen Barth Eide (in orange jacket in the 2nd row) and the representatives of other Nordic countries met, among other things, representatives of the Joint Task Force North (JTFN) in Iqaluit. JTFN is responsible for the operations of Canada’s defense in the north of the country. Photo: Canadian Foreign Ministry / X They also point out that there are no talks related to defense and the military in the Arctic Council. Not everyone would have believed a few years ago that it would be Canada that took the initiative for such a collaboration. It testifies to a significant political change of course, according to senior researcher Andreas Østhagen at Fridjof Nansen’s institute. He says that Canada has long been skeptical about involving other countries in its Arctic areas. In terms of security, much has been left to the United States. – There has been a slightly underlying attitude in Canadian Arctic policy, and security policy in general, that you should protect your own and keep allied countries a little away, says Østhagen to news. Andreas Østhagen researches, among other things, security policy in the Arctic and the northern regions. Photo: The Nordic Center But the situation has changed. Especially since 2022 and Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine. A new way of talking about the Arctic Canada is now, among other things, working on a new Arctic strategy, expected before the New Year. In the new defense strategy from this spring, they emphasized the importance of protecting their interests in the Arctic. – There is no doubt that Canada has partly realized that it has to be more open and include allies in its security policy concerns in the Arctic, says Andreas Østhagen. In the past, Canada and the Nordic countries have had relatively little contact. Østhagen believes that political cooperation on security in the Arctic can be useful for several reasons: To exchange information. Create a common understanding of what is going on and any threats. Find common measures that can keep tensions down. The senior researcher also reminds us of one thing: the Arctic is still a region without conflicts. The only unsettled border is between Canada and the United States. Nevertheless, Canadian-Nordic security cooperation shows that the region is not isolated from the dynamics that characterize the rest of the world. – The initiative is relevant to the shift in the way we talk about the northern regions and the Arctic: as an arena for geopolitical rivalry and security policy challenges, says Østhagen. Interested in abroad? Listen to the foreign affairs editor’s podcast: Published 16.11.2024, at 22.16
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