From the Cold War to the cold war: the struggle for the Arctic
The Arctic, a region neglected since the end of the Cold War, has returned to international politics as a area of \u200b\u200bpossible disputes, thanks to global warming. The importance of the region came to the fore in the last week thanks to the leak of Wikileaks cables on the subject and Denmark announced a claim.
is estimated that the ice covering the Arctic protects about 25% of oil left to exploit on the planet, which would put the region on a par with Saudi Arabia in deposits of black gold. " It is also rich in natural gas, coal, iron, silver, gold, zinc and even said that rubies.
The Meltdown is making these resources more accessible especially to the United States, Canada, Russia, Denmark, and Norway are the countries that have lines that border the Arctic.
And they all covet take a large piece of cake.
The problem is not land borders, which are well defined, the question that arises now is who is the maritime area and especially those who are the vast wealth it contains.
To resolve this dispute in the five countries in 2008 committed themselves to respect the Convention on the Law of the United Nations until 2014 should settle the various territorial claims.
Tensions Rise But although there is a will to reach an agreement in a legal and peaceful, cables secrets revealed by Wikileaks shows that the dispute over natural resources is getting red hot, and may even worsen the BBC said Robert Huebert, an expert on Arctic geopolitics at the University of Calgary in Canada.
"Wikileaks cables indicate that the Danes believe they have the right to claim to the North Pole, which the Russians also believe that (...), could be a source of conflict in the future "
Robert Huebert, geopolitical
" Wikileaks cables indicate that the Danes believe they have the right to claim to the North Pole, which they also believe the Russians. This indicates that the claims could overcome, which could be a source of conflict in the future, "said the expert.
Another sign that the potential for future conflict would increase is a gradual and relentless militarization of the Arctic. In a cable, U.S. diplomats speak of a "potential increase in military threats in the Arctic."
Robert Huebert says, "We are seeing the reestablishment of military capacities. All Arctic nations except Canada are going to develop its combat capability to operate in the Arctic " Huebert says. "But the reason for this is not to dominate the Arctic by force, but the disappearance of the ice as the Arctic is becoming an obstacle in the ocean as any other that allows countries to act if necessary."
"The fact that the U.S. has established a significant number of combat aircraft in Alaska and the fact that it has an anti-ballistic missile system because there is not going to keep an air war with Russians. They are there if one day North Korea launched a missile. But the problem is that if the Americans have deployed this system in the Arctic Russia is doing it, "said the expert.
XXI century struggles
As already known, Wikileaks cables quoted Russia's ambassador to NATO, saying" XXI century will be a struggle for resources, and Russia must not be defeated in this fight ... NATO knows where the winds originate. From the north ".
also revealed that in April 2008, the Russian navy chief, Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky, said" while in the Arctic is no peace and stability can not be exclude that in future there is a redistribution of power, including armed intervention. "
In September 2010, during an international conference on the Arctic held in Moscow, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, denied that the region can become a international battlefield.
United States has increased the number of fighters in Alaska
"Any speculation about a competition for Arctic resources are unfounded . Despite the existing territorial disputes among Arctic nations, all problems can be fixed through diplomatic channels. "
Meanwhile, the Kremlin has not been idle. Moscow claims a territory covering 1.2 million square kilometers in the Arctic and reaches the North Pole. In what is seen by observers as an attempt to establish territorial control, the Russian government is building eight power plants in the Arctic that could become operational in 2012.
In 2007, a team of Cuban scientists explored the Arctic ocean floor on two mini submarines. The scientific mission aimed at finding evidence that a vast underwater mountain range was the geological extension of Russian territory. As a symbolic gesture, the scientists planted a titanium capsule with the Russian flag at 4,200 meters deep.
Shortly thereafter, Canada announced it would build two military bases in the Arctic. However, in 2011, construction has not begun.
Uncertain Future
For now, is winning the willingness of countries Arctic to resolve their disputes by political means and according to international standard, according to the expert in geopolitics, in the short term, it seems unlikely that the tension go to military.
But what will happen long term is a question that some stare in awe. Especially since, in addition to access to natural resources, the melting will also open new routes for shipping and tourism as well as increased fishing opportunities, which could also become a source of international tensions.
"It will be an environmental disaster and it seems that nobody is going to do something about it
Robert Huebert
And if this were not enough, we must not forget the impact on the environment environment, something that horrifies environmentalists who feel powerless.
experts say we face a paradox: the resources that were once inaccessible are becoming more readily available due to climate change. However, if they start to explode, climate change will accelerate in the region, which could have devastating consequences the planet.
"It will be an environmental disaster and it seems that nobody is going to do something about it," says Huebert.
long process
But there will be many years until they can extract the treasures of the Arctic.
Due to the difficult conditions of the Arctic territory, is costing time and money poor countries to map the territory.
Moreover, according to Robert Huebert, we will take a long time for the UN to consider claims must be accompanied by scientific evidence.
The ultimate end of this process has been Denmark.
This week, the Danish Foreign Ministry said it was preparing documents for submission to the United Nations to support your claim and publish them next month.
Then the panel of UN experts will have to decide whether to approve the claim or not. If rejects, Denmark will have to find scientific evidence supporting its claim and resubmit it as happened to Russia in 2000. This fight is just beginning and it may become more prominent in the coming years.
Posted by Miguel ...
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