The EU in the Arctic
| DOI | 10.1177/002070201106600414 |
| Published date | 01 December 2011 |
| Author | Kristine Offerdal |
| Date | 01 December 2011 |
| Subject Matter | II. The European Union and the Arctic |
| International Journal | Autumn 2011 | 861 |
Kristine Offerdal
The EU in the Arctic
In pursuit of legitimacy and influence
On what grounds should we understand European Union’s Arctic policy,
and what type of influence can this system, which is less than a state but
more than an international organization, have on developments in the
region? The EU is composed of 27 member-states, most of which have
peripheral relations with the Arctic. Only three member-states—Denmark,
Finland and Sweden—have more or less direct stakes in the Arctic and are
member-states of the Arctic Council as well. In addition, the EU has signed
agreements such as the European economic agreement with two Arctic-
oriented states, Norway and Iceland.
This article sheds light on what role the European Union seeks in
Arctic affairs and how its ambitions overlap with and/or challenge the
interests of the region’s coastal states. EU-Norway relations serve as a case
in point.1 First, the article discusses the reasons why the EU, which only a
few years ago did not aspire to become an influential actor in the region, is
now developing a cross-cutting Arctic policy. Second, it identifies key EU
Kristine Offerdal is associate professor at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies and
program manager of the international research program on geopolitics in the high north.
1 The article draws on the analysis in Kristine Offerdal, The Politics of Energy in the
European High North: Norway and the “Petroleum Dialogue” with the USA and the
EU (Oslo: Unipub, 2010), updated with 12 semi-structured interviews with relevant
policymakers and officials in Brussels and Oslo in spring 2011, recent policy
documents, and other studies.
| 862 | Autumn 2011 | International Journal |
| Kristine Offerdal |
priorities, with a focus on Norwegian priorities, in order to identify common
and diverging interests. Finally, the article discusses the prospects for the
European Union to increase its influence on Arctic developments. The
analysis aims to contribute to the understanding of whether the Arctic is in
a process of “opening up” for new actors, or whether developments in the
region are, and will continue to be, dominated by stakeholders already part
of an Arctic “inner circle.”
EU Arctic policy should not be understood as the coordinated product
of clear-cut rational calculations. One reason is the obvious fact that the
EU consists of 27 member-states, with their various agendas, and three
institutions that have developed institutional dynamics internally and among
themselves. EU Arctic policy is in some respects incoherent and unclear
due to the institutional setup and the power relations between institutions
and the EU level and between the EU level and the member-states. The
EU seeks to harmonize interests and in most cases does not enjoy decisive
power over the member-states. Consequently, EU Arctic policy cannot be
derived directly from the member-states’ interests or be understood as the
priorities of the agenda-setting, policy-driving European Commission, or
of the parliament. In some respects it is the result of a bargaining process
among various relevant stakeholders and in other respects the result of a
coordinating process. Policy documents from the European Commission
and parliament are often mistakenly taken for official EU policy while they
are in fact just expressions of these institutions’ priorities at a given stage
of the policymaking process, or even of those of a handful of people within
these institutions.
This article argues that EU Arctic policy is still on the drawing board.
The EU has since 2007 gone through a learning process on Arctic matters,
in which its priorities have been more clearly defined, particularly in relation
to coastal states. Important factors that motivate and affect policy are the
engagement of a small number of particularly active stakeholders at the
state, institutional, and individual levels; Arctic or international events; and
EU policy in other issue areas with Arctic implications. Since 2007 EU Arctic
policy has developed from addressing the security implications of climate
change, to focusing on how the EU could gain legitimacy and influence by
being a responsible actor, to a more recent approach of highlighting EU
rights as well as responsibilities in the region. It has become a major goal to
be accepted as a legitimate and natural partner in Arctic affairs.
There seems to be general agreement on the basic principles of Arctic
affairs between Norway and the EU. It is more likely that possibly contested
To continue reading
Request your trial