Conclusion. When looking at the contemporary field of cooperation in the Arctic, it very quickly becomes clear that firstly

When looking at the contemporary field of cooperation in the Arctic, it very quickly becomes clear that firstly, environmental concerns have mainly contributed to local, regional and international agreements. During the Cold War, the cooperation was limited to countries within the military blocs and environmental concerns only started to play a role in the 1970s. Secondly, the collapse of the Soviet Union meant new possibilities of cooperation in all spheres. Increasing indigenous self-esteem, environmental issues, longing for stability and fairly unrestricted exchange of knowledge especially regarding climate change have only become possible after the end of the Cold War.

The international treaties in the Arctic, also from the pre-Cold War period are mainly based on the principle of equality and shared rights to resources. In how far this principle can be maintained in times of climate change remains to be seen, but it can be assumed that only through intelligent ways of political guidance and less national interests, the concept of international cooperation in the Arctic will endure.

 

References:

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- Arctic Council. 1996. Declaration on the Establishment of the Arctic Council. Ottawa

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- BBC News. 2007. Russia plants Flag under N Pole. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6927395.stm, 14.05.2008

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- Convention Respecting Measures for the Preservation and Protection of the Fur Seals http://www.intfish.net/treaties/furseals11.htm

- Heininen, Lassi, Olli-Pekka Jalonen and Jyrki Käkönen. 1995. The Arctic in International Society – The Current State. In: Heininen, Lassi, Jalonen, Olli-Pekka and Käkönen, Jyrki.1995. Expanding the Northern Dimension. The final report of the International Arctic Project of TAPRI (Tampere Peace Research Institute). Research Report No. 61. Tampere

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- Seidler, Christoph. 2008. Politicians censor Report on Dangers of Arctic Drilling http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,530454,00.html, 14.05.08

 

 

[1] http://www.lswilson.ca/dewline.htm, 14.05.08

[2] http://www.intfish.net/treaties/furseals11.htm, 14.05.08

 

[3] http://www.beac.st/default.asp?id=134, 14.05.08

[4] http://ec.europa.eu/external_relations/north_dim/; 14.05.08

[5] http://www.northernforum.org/servlet/content/history.html, 14.05.08

[6] http://www.bellona.org/subjects/1140449074.91/support_view, 14.05.08

[7] http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,530454,00.html, 14.05.08

[8] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6927395.stm