Polar Cooperation Research Centre (PCRC)

February 28, 2023 Press Release

International Workshop on “Arctic Ocean Governance and the Law of the Sea” identified important topics for further collaborative research

On 17 February 2023, the ArCS II Research Program on International Law convened an international online workshop to discuss new and persistent challenges regarding Arctic Ocean governance and law of the sea. Over 100 participants registered to this event, which demonstrates the scholarly interests in the subject matter, in light of the recent geopolitical difficulties affecting also the Arctic governance. The keynote presentation by Prof. Suzanne Lalonde (Université de Montréal) and the following discussion are available for on-demand viewing on YouTube.

Professor Lalonde’s keynote presentation on-demand video viewing

The workshop gathered international law experts from around the world and fostered exchange on various legal issues concerning Arctic Ocean governance in light of recent developments such as climate change and current geopolitical issues. Discussions on the continental shelf, indigenous rights and the roles of several Arctic and non-Arctic states demonstrated the multitude of legal issues and interests at stake. The workshop highlighted the important role the international law continues to play in the Arctic Ocean governance and the increasing interactions of different international legal regimes.

One underlying theme of the workshop was the topic of the Rule of Law and how it still remains the basis of current Arctic Ocean governance. Prof. Suzanne Lalonde (Université de Montréal) exemplified this in her keynote presentation on the Arctic extended continental shelf process. In particular, she noted the importance of legal certainty and trust when it comes to boundary issues, such as this one. Additionally, the topic of the Rule of Law recurred in the discussion surrounding Prof. Alexander Sergunin’s (St. Petersburg State University) talk on the implementation of the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement, an Agreement that was adopted in order to prevent unregulated fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean during a time of scientific uncertainty. The workshop thus made it clear that while changes in Arctic Ocean governance are necessary and inevitable, the rule of law must not be forgotten.

Another theme which emerged from the workshop is the increasing amount of interactions that are taking place between the Arctic Ocean governance regimes and other global regimes. An example thereof was presented by Prof. Kentaro Nishimoto (National Institute of Polar Research/Tohoku University) in his talk on the future Agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ). Prof. Nishimoto made it clear that the BBNJ regime does not exist in a vacuum but raises important questions related to Arctic Ocean governance, such as its implications on marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Central Arctic Ocean.

The workshop also highlighted Chinese views on the Arctic Ocean governance through two presentations by Dan Liu (Shanghai Jiao Tong University) on Arctic Indigenous Peoples and Yuanyuan Ren (Hamilton College) on the potential implication on the Arctic of the 2016 South China Sea Arbitration. Nengye Liu (Singapore Management University) acted as the chair of the second session and also actively engaged in the discussion.

At the mid-point in ArCS II project (June 2020 – March 2025) and based on our previous research on the Arctic Ocean governance, this workshop identified more concrete research topics and direction for the ArCS II International Law Research Program. In particular, the project could investigate how other global regimes affect and interact with the Arctic Ocean governance frameworks. One such regime-interaction study could focus on the BBNJ’s implications on the new fisheries agreement and possible MPA’s in the Central Arctic Ocean.

Written by A. Stella Ebbersmeyer
Ph.D. student, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Research Fellow, Kobe University PCRC, January 31 – March 14, 2023

<Relevant Information>
Official website of the International Workshop: <http://polarresearch.org/arcs2_lawoftheseas_2023/>

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