On Tuesday 2 February, Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, announced that the European Union Arctic strategy, an updated version of which is due to be presented in the autumn, will focus on three areas.
“We will focus on three key aims: preserving the Arctic as a region of peaceful cooperation, slowing the effects of climate change, and supporting the sustainable development of the Arctic regions to the benefit of future generations”, he explained in a recorded speech at the Arctic Frontiers conference.
These three areas of focus are very similar to the ones in the current strategy, which was adopted in 2016: tackling climate change and protecting the environment, promoting sustainable development and strengthening international cooperation (see EUROPE 12647/20).
The High Representative believes that climate change is the greatest threat facing the Arctic. “Temperature increases are double global averages: an additional 2-3 degrees Celsius globally becomes 5-6 degrees in the Arctic. As a consequence, the melt of ice and the thaw of permafrost is already happening and it is accelerating”, he said.
Security problems are also affecting the Arctic. According to Borrell, the EU is paying particular attention to great power competition for resources. “Most tensions in the Arctic are primarily linked to geopolitical global posturing”, he said, adding that Arctic safety and security issues need to be seen in a broader context.
Russia, the United States and China are taking a close interest in the Arctic. “With increasing competition for resources and influence, it is more important than ever that international cooperation remains the norm in the Arctic region”, the High Representative said in his blog.
The EU also plans to focus on the future of local people. “Those living in the Arctic regions, in particular the indigenous peoples and the younger generation, know best how important and difficult it is to balance environmental aims with the retention of jobs and benefits from economic activity in their regions”, Borrell said. He explained that the EU wants to work with its partners to achieve this balance. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)