Roundtable
Munich Security Forum - Arctic Security Roundtable
Many government officials, military leaders, and political observers have proclaimed the rise of a new, post-Cold War global great power competition between the United States, Russia, and China with myriad implications. At the Arctic Security Roundtable at the Munich Security Conference, participants are asked to explore, discuss, and debate this issue in the context of, and implications for the new globalized Arctic. The Roundtable is organized by the MSC in cooperation with NUPI and Wilson Centre.
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Articles
Security realities of freezing politics and thawing landscapes in the Arctic
NUPI@MSC: How do we meet the challenges in a changing Arctic?
Read joint NUPI-Wilson Center report on Arctic security discussed at MSC 2020.
New publications
A Governance and Risk Inventory for a Changing Arctic
Background Paper for the Arctic Security Roundtable at the Munich Security Conference 2020
A Governance and Risk Inventory for a Changing Arctic
In this chapter, Elana Wilson Rowe, Ulf Sverdrup, Karsten Friis, Geir Hønneland, and Mike Sfraga caution against viewing trends of conflict and cooperation in the Arctic in binary terms. While the US and Europe are determined to confront malign activity in the region, all sides continue to “demonstrate a commitment to cooperation and joint solutions to common challenges.” After reviewing the key factors and drivers supporting and challenging stability in the Arctic, the authors remind us that “cooperation in conflict” has long been the norm in the region, allowing cooperative governance to progress despite the enduring NATO-Russia military rivalry. Ongoing dialogue in the region – essential for addressing the regional and global implications of climate change – is poorly served by focussing on “narratives or practices of strategic competition alone.” To avoid “political tipping points” beyond which cooperation will become too difficult, the authors call on policymakers to be more proactive in how they address emerging governance challenges related to security and economic development.