EU policy towards the Arctic region

Nowhere is climate change more visible than in the Arctic area. The Arctic Ocean is projected to have a nearly ice-free summer within the next 30 to 40 years. The European Union (EU) is committed to protecting the environment and combating climate change in this region.

ACT

Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council - Developing a European Union policy towards the Arctic region: progress since 2008 and next steps (JOIN(2012) 19 final of 26 June 2012).

SUMMARY

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THIS JOINT COMMUNICATION?

The Joint Communication of the Commission and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (JC) demonstrates the EU’s environmental protection action in this region. It also advocates increased EU investment in global and sustainable development.

KEY POINTS

In 2008, the Commission adopted a first communication on the Arctic region proposing an EU Arctic policy with 3 main objectives:

• to protect and preserve the Arctic in cooperation with the local people;
• to promote the sustainable use of resources;
• to encourage international cooperation.

This 2012 joint communication reviews the EU’s contribution to the Arctic since 2008. It prepares the path for future EU involvement in the Arctic to jointly meet the challenges of safeguarding the environment and ensuring sustainable development.

A strategic region

The Arctic is an area of growing strategic importance. Its changing landscape is opening up new transport lanes and the exploitation of natural and mineral resources, like oil and gas. Extending from Europe to Asia, the Northern Sea Route could shorten the time taken by cargo vessels to travel between the Pacific and the Atlantic by about one third.

While this will be of benefit for the regional and global economy, it will also have repercussions on the Arctic’s fragile environment. This is why the JC proposes a new EU Arctic policy that focuses on 3 areas:

• 1.

  support for research andknowledge to address environmental and climate change in the Arctic: the Horizon 2020 programme seeks broad cooperation with researchers in Arctic specialisations. A European-Arctic information centre has also been created to provide information about the EU’s role in the Arctic;

• 2.

  responsible action to ensure that economic development in the Arctic is both sustainable and based on environmental expertise. The main objective is to work with Arctic partners (including the private sector) to develop low-risk technologies that could possibly be used by the extractive and the shipping industries. The EU is also exploring innovative economic activities, such as ecotourism*;

• 3.

  constructive engagementand dialogue with Arctic states, indigenous peoples and other partners to increase awareness and jointly address the challenges.

EU support

Since 2008, the EU has provided over €1.14 billion developing the economic, social and environmental potential of the EU’s Arctic regions (Denmark, Finland and Sweden). EU Structural Funds have invested substantially in the development of the Arctic region with initiatives like the Sápmi subprogramme to support the cultural and industrial development of the Sami population.

The EU has also contributed around €200 million to international research in the Arctic. It is also the main contributor to the Support Fund of the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership (NDEP) which supports projects in the Barents region of the Arctic.

International cooperation

The EU’s stated aims are to support the international effort to fight climate change through the use of alternative energy sources and research.

Arctic states cooperate on the basis of the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas. The Arctic Council is emerging as the leading regional body in which all Arctic states (Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States) as well as indigenous peoples are represented.

BACKGROUND

The EU is a major destination of resources (hydrocarbons and raw materials) and goods (such as fish) from the Arctic region. Its policies and legislation thus have important implications for Arctic governments, business and consumers.

For further information, see the EU Arctic policy on the European Union’s external action service website.

KEY TERMS

* Ecotourism: responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the welfare of local people (the International Ecotourism Society definition).

RELATED ACTS

Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council - The European Union and the Arctic region (COM(2008) 763 final of 20 November 2008).

Joint staff working document - The inventory of activities in the framework of developing a European Union Arctic policy accompanying the document Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council - Developing a European Union policy towards the Arctic region: progress since 2008 and next steps (SWD(2012) 182 final of 26 June 2012).

Joint staff working document - Space and the Arctic accompanying the document Joint Communication to the European Parliament and the Council - Developing a European Union policy towards the Arctic region: progress since 2008 and next steps (SWD(2012) 183 final of 26 June 2012).

last update 18.07.2015