Arctic nations pledge to tackle 'climate crisis' at 12th Council Ministerial meeting

The foreign ministers of the US, Russia, Canada, and Nordic nations who gathered in Reykjavik, Iceland to hold the Arctic Council Ministerial meeting on Thursday pledged towards sustainable Arctic development and combat global warming. At the 12th Arctic Council Ministerial meeting, leaders from all eight Arctic States signed the 2021 joint declaration reaffirming the Council’s commitment to maintaining peace, stability, and constructive cooperation in the Arctic region, and to immediately address the climate crisis in the Arctic. 

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the meeting that the US was committed to “advancing a peaceful Arctic region where cooperation prevails on climate, the environment, science, and safety.” He told counterparts from Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden on the Council’s 25th anniversary, that the US reflects shared values in the conservation of the Arctic marine environment, climate, and clean energy solutions. He stated that the US views the Arctic as a region for the strategic competition which has recently seized the world's attention. “But ‘rule of law’ must be ensured so that it remains a region free of conflict where countries act responsibly," Blinken added. 

Addressing the issue of global warming, which the Arctic council agreed had accelerated three times faster in the Far North, Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau said, “the climate crisis is our most serious long-term threat with the Arctic warming three times faster than anywhere else on the planet.” Meanwhile, Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod pledged a fight against global warming in the Arctic saying that the nordic nations and others “have a duty to strengthen our cooperation for the benefit of the people inhabiting the Arctic.” 

10-year strategic plan 

The countries also signed a 10-year strategic plan for the first time in the Council's history. Leaders discussed issues of climate change on the Arctic, the future of shipping in the Arctic, increased marine traffic in the Arctic waters its impact on biodiversity and species as well as ways to reduce pollution, promote the well-being of Arctic inhabitants. Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs Gudlaugur Thór Thórdarson told the live-streamed address that the Arctic Council is “coming of age, and we are proud that we agree on the first-ever strategic plan of the Arctic Council. The strategic plan is a framework for decades to come and a vision of the Arctic in 2030.” 

Major reports adopted at the Ministerial meeting include the Arctic Climate Change Update 2021, the State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Report, a Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter in the Arctic, Gender Equality in the Arctic report, and the Summary of Progress and Recommendations from the Council’s Expert Group on Black Carbon and Methane.