As part of Canada’s new Arctic foreign policy, Canada will appoint a new Arctic ambassador and open two new consulates in the region to address changing geopolitical dynamics in the Arctic.
“Canada is at a tipping point in the Arctic,” Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, who launched the new policy with Defense Minister Bill Blair and Northern Affairs Minister Dan Vandal, said in Ottawa on Friday morning.
In launching the new policy, Global Affairs Canada cites the war between Russia and Ukraine, climate change, growing strategic interests and competition from non-Arctic countries as the main factors that have changed the situation. .
“Canada has long sought to manage the Arctic and northern regions cooperatively with other countries as a low-tension zone free of arms competition,” Joly said.
“But the guardrails we rely on to prevent and resolve conflict are weakening.”
Arctic Foreign Policy provides five years of funding with an upfront investment of $34.7 million and an ongoing investment of $7 million.
Among the policy’s list of key initiatives, Canada will appoint an Arctic ambassador and open new consulates in Anchorage, Alaska, and Nuuk, Greenland.
This policy emphasizes the need to work even more closely with Canada’s closest ally, the United States, to maintain a secure North American homeland.
It is also recommended that Canada move ever closer to its Nordic allies, and work on that has already begun.
Speaking on the background, a senior government official confirmed that Minister Joly recently met with the foreign ministers of the Nordic allies to discuss security issues.
Canada is concerned about non-Arctic countries and stakeholders who want a greater role in Arctic affairs.
Global Affairs Canada said Canada’s adversaries are using non-military tactics such as cyber operations, foreign interference and economic coercion to seek to exert influence.
“The North American Arctic is no longer stress-free,” the policy states.
“A diplomatic strategy, Arctic Foreign Policy, addresses not only the challenges and opportunities Canada currently faces, but also those expected to face in the coming decades. “It gives us the diplomatic tools we need to continue to advocate for the United States, advance our national security interests, and promote a stable, prosperous, and secure Arctic.”
Consistency with defense policy
Arctic foreign policy also aims to align diplomatic efforts in the region with the newly updated defense policy, “Our North, Strong and Free.”
“Canada has benefited greatly from our geography. Surrounded by three oceans and our closest ally to the south, we have enjoyed some degree of protection to keep our borders secure. That reality is changing,” said Defense Secretary Bill Blair.
The Minister of Defense has identified climate change, particularly the rate of warming in the Arctic, as a national defense concern.
“In the coming decades, the Arctic Ocean will become an important shipping route between Europe and Asia, making vast amounts of natural resources increasingly accessible. This increased access is already drawing countries to the region. , security challenges and geopolitical competition are increasing,” Prime Minister Blair said.
protect people living in the north
The new policy was co-developed with First Nations, Inuit and Métis groups and is billed as a complement to the existing Arctic and Northern Policy Framework (ANPF), which was launched in 2019.
This policy established a common vision for the Arctic and the North. Strong, prosperous and safe people and communities.
“The success of this new foreign policy depends on continuing to learn from the invaluable experience, knowledge and wisdom of First Nations, Inuit, Métis, modern treaties, self-governing partners and communities,” Minister Vandal said.
“Through this policy, Canada’s approach to the Arctic will support Indigenous self-determination and the values, interests of Arctic and northern Indigenous peoples, including incorporating traditional knowledge into Arctic decision-making at the global level. It will be developed with respect for culture and tradition.”
The new foreign policy aims to achieve the objectives of the ANPF while addressing the changing geopolitical situation.
