The Strange World of US-Russian Cooperation in the Arctic

The Arctic is not just the home to rapidly shrinking levels of sea ice, extinction, and methane deposits — it is also home to the most unregulated border between Russia and the United States. As a result, this theatre is the perfect region to retaliate against the other state. However, Heather Conley and Andrei Zagorski write in A Roadmap for U.S.-Russia Relations that the Arctic is, “one of the few regions where cooperation between Russia and the United States… remains largely shielded from the recent deterioration of bilateral relations.”[1] So, what makes Arctic cooperation so distinct? The states’ actions in the Arctic are noncontroversial — economic, scientific, or mutually beneficial agreements that rarely involve military actors or territorial disputes. Additionally, the region is relatively demilitarized, and thus the United States and Russia have been able to cooperate.

Most noncontroversial actions between the United States and Russia are facilitated by treaties through the Arctic Council. This International Organization, founded in 1996, creates non-binding legislation for the eight states in the Arctic region to facilitate cooperation.[2] Examples of past treaties include the “Agreement on Cooperation on Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response in the Arctic,” a Prohibition on Fishing on the High Seas, the Russian-American Long-Term Census of the Arctic (RUSALCA), and the Agreement on Cooperation on Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue in the Arctic. These initiatives are all defined by the American Security Project as “low risk” or “some risk;”[3] risk is defined as the probability for further escalation and problems in cooperation. The only risk of these actions is the increased presence of American Coast Guard materiale for the latter treaty.

In addition, the Arctic region is governed with stability because of international cooperation. In May of 2008, “the five littoral Arctic states… signed the ‘Ilulissat Declaration,’... reaffirming the primacy of UNCLOS as regulator of the Arctic Ocean.”[4] Because the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea is the prime regulator of sea-based negotiations in the Arctic, there is a definitive legal backstop for any state actions that are pursued in the region.

However, this does not mean that Russia and the United States have always cooperated in the region. For example, the Arctic Council during 2015-2017 was chaired by the United States. This resulted in an unproductive chairmanship session, as Russia and the United States were unable to cooperate during this time period and pass successful legislation.[5]

However, previous militarization of the Arctic region during the Cold War has proved to be a challenge to achieving cooperation. The previous prevalence of both US and Russian nuclear submarines in the region had previously established it as militarily significant. But, the START I and II nuclear negotiations have resulted in a current limited presence of nuclear submarines; the area is no longer contested by solely the United States and Russia. Rather, as Ron Purver writes in Polar Politics, the Arctic has become a site of “multilateralization.”[6] Nations such as Canada and Norway have pushed for greater regional control, as to “offset what would otherwise be the unbearably overwhelming influence of superpowers.”[7]

The geopolitical balance of power in the Arctic Region has recently been stabilitized by multilateralism, UN Conventions and treaties; this geopolitical stability rests on the willingness of the United States and Russia to cooperate. Although the Arctic region is unlikely to be the ground zero of World War III, it is nevertheless important to closely monitor states’ adherence to efforts of international cooperation.

Olwyn Kells is a sophomore concentrating in International and Public Affairs and Slavic Studies. She currently serves as a staff writer for the BULR Blog, and can be reached at olwyn_kells@brown.edu.

References

Conley, Heather A., and Andrei Zagorski. A Roadmap for U.S.-Russia Relations. Report. Edited by Kortunov Andrey and Oliker Olga. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), 2017. 23-35. Accessed October 31, 2020. doi:10.2307/resrep23179.8.

“The Arctic Council.” Arctic Council, arctic-council.org/en/.

“US-Russia Cooperation in the Arctic.” Accessed October 31, 2020. https://www.americansecurityproject.org/us-russia-cooperation-in-the-arctic/.

Rainwater, Shiloh. “International Law and the ‘Globalization’ of the Arctic: Assessing the Rights of Non-Arctic States in the High North: Emory University School of Law: Atlanta, GA.” Emory University School of Law. Accessed October 31, 2020. https://law.emory.edu/eilr/content/volume-30/issue-1/comments/international-law-globalization-arctic-rights-high-north.html.

Purver, Ron. "Security and Arms Control at the Poles." International Journal 39, no. 4 (1984): 888-910. Accessed October 31, 2020. doi:10.2307/40202300.

Ibid.

[1] Conley, Heather A., and Andrei Zagorski. A Roadmap for U.S.-Russia Relations. Report. Edited by Kortunov Andrey and Oliker Olga. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), 2017. 23-35. Accessed October 31, 2020. doi:10.2307/resrep23179.8.

[2] “The Arctic Council.” Arctic Council, arctic-council.org/en/.

[3] “US-Russia Cooperation in the Arctic.” Accessed October 31, 2020. https://www.americansecurityproject.org/us-russia-cooperation-in-the-arctic/.

[4] Rainwater, Shiloh. “International Law and the ‘Globalization’ of the Arctic: Assessing the Rights of Non-Arctic States in the High North: Emory University School of Law: Atlanta, GA.” Emory University School of Law. Accessed October 31, 2020. https://law.emory.edu/eilr/content/volume-30/issue-1/comments/international-law-globalization-arctic-rights-high-north.html.

[5] Conley, Heather A., and Andrei Zagorski. A Roadmap for U.S.-Russia Relations. Report. Edited by Kortunov Andrey and Oliker Olga. Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), 2017. 23-35. Accessed October 31, 2020. doi:10.2307/resrep23179.8.

[6] Purver, Ron. "Security and Arms Control at the Poles." International Journal 39, no. 4 (1984): 888-910. Accessed October 31, 2020. doi:10.2307/40202300.

[7] Ibid.

Student ContributorOlwyn Kells '23November 15, 2020Comment