February 18, 2021
Carl BildtCo-Chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations
I wouldn’t call it a headache, but it is an area where all sides have to be increasingly careful in the years to come. The Arctic is still a low-tension region in which the Arctic Council provides a framework for cooperation, including with Russia. It is important to stress the value of keeping that framework, since it is firmly based on respect for international law.
The security concerns that are sometimes raised are often overblown. The new military positions Russia has opened up on some islands north of Siberia are more of a possible threat to polar bears than to anything else. The long-term political future of Greenland, however, is an issue to be watched, although I don’t see any change coming soon.