Canada, Russia and the United States have expressed a renewed interest in the region, and East Asian countries such as Japan, South Korea and China are now increasingly fixated on prospects offered by the Arctic; however, Arctic and East Asian nations have not yet engaged in extensive discussions about competing and complementary activities and responsibilities in the Far North. This volume is an outcome of an international collaborative project that launched a focused and detailed conversation about the historic, contemporary and future dimensions of East Asian countries’ relationships and interests in the Arctic. Bringing together leading experts from Japan, China, South Korea, Russia, the United States and Canada, it draws policy-making and scholarly attention to East Asia’s growing interests in the Far North, and identifies political, economic, legal and security connections between the two regions.

This book examines the growing interest by Asian states, which are normally considered as ‘outsiders’ in the Arctic governance system. Whilst existing research asserts that Asian states are mostly interested in the economic aspect of the changing Arctic, including its mineral and fossil sources and the opening up of new sea routes, the book argues that the relation between Asian states and the Arctic is much more complex and dynamic, grounded in their unique perspective on national security and the role of economic development in securing their national interests.

Addressing the growing economic, political, and cultural presence of Asian states in the Arctic region, this timely book looks at how that presence is being evaluated and engaged with by Arctic states and their northern communities. A diverse range of authors addresses the question that underpins so much of this interest in Asian engagement with the northern latitudes: what do Asian countries want to gain from the Arctic?

Over the last few years Asian governments have taken a stronger approach to the Arctic, culminating with permanent-observer status to the Arctic Council for China, India, Japan, Singapore and South-Korea in May 2013. This groundbreaking book brings together the latest research in emerging Asian interests for the Arctic region, and the implications thereof this change has for the future.This book covers Arctic shipping, fisheries and mineral extraction. It analyzes key Asian countries' policies, positions and activities. The book also demonstrates that there are common aspects which attract Asian countries to the Arctic, such as a concern for climate change, but there are also important national differences. From the Arctic Council to UNCLOS, Arctic governance mechanisms are thoroughly presented and analyzed.Contributed by scholars from both Asia — China, India, Japan, Singapore and South-Korea — as well as Arctic countries — Norway and USA, this book is an essential source of reference for both academics and government professionals, as well for the readers keen on understanding the dynamic change in the Arctic region.

"This series of six papers provides intensive analysis and discussion of historic, contemporary and future developments in East Asia-Arctic relations, from a group of leading experts from Japan, China, South Korea, the United States and Canada, working in the fields of Arctic sovereignty and international relations." --

This book presents narratives, perspectives and policies on the Arctic and brings to fore the strategies of five Asian countries - China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea and Singapore who were granted the status of Permanent Observers in the Arctic Council in 2013. The book also captures Arctic countries’ reactions to Asian approaches, and their expectations from these countries. The melting of the polar sea-ice induced by climate change has placed the Arctic region in the forefront of global scientific, economic, strategic and academic interest. The discourse involves a number of issues such as claims of the littoral countries to the continental shelves of the region, the management and exploitation of its living and non-living resources, the rights and interests of indigenous communities, and the prospects of new ice-free shipping routes. The contemporary discourse also suggests that the Arctic region presents challenges and offers opportunities for the international community. These issues have given rise to new geopolitical, geoeconomic, and geostrategic dynamics amongst the Arctic littorals, and led to the growing interest of non-Arctic states in the affairs of the Arctic. It is evident that the Asian countries have a variety of interests in the Arctic, and the grant of Permanent Observer status to these countries is an acknowledgement of their capabilities. These countries are keen to explore opportunities in the Arctic, and have begun to formulate appropriate long-term national strategies. The preliminary approach of the Asian Observer countries has rightly been to graduate from ‘involvement’ to ‘engagement’ in the Arctic, which seems to have generated significant interest amongst analysts. This book helps to understand the approaches of various Arctic and non-Arctic stakeholders, in light of the evolving dynamics in the region.

This book focuses on the participation and interaction of the three great powers—i.e., China, Russia, and the United States—in Arctic affairs from an international relations perspective. Global climate change has become a shared problem for all mankind. One of its key elements is the warming of the Arctic, which is affecting every dimension of nature and humanity globally. Climate change in the Arctic will directly affect natural ecosystems, coastal areas, forests, water resources, agricultural production, animal husbandry, tourism, and other economic activities in various countries around the globe. For the Northeast Asian region, however, the opening of the Arctic Passage by melting sea ice presents an opportunity. The current international legal regime for governance in the Arctic is insufficient to cope with the challenges of global warming. This book will be of interest to scholars following the future development of the Arctic and the role of China as a newcomer to Arctic affairs.

Japanese scholars have also expressed concerns only the five coastal states and are beyond the purview that the application of international maritime law in the of the Arctic Council. [...] In the earliest official Chinese statement the International Arctic Science Committee, the on the Arctic, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs International Association of Classification Societies, the Hu Zhengyue stated that "Arctic countries should Conference of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region, protect the balance between the interests of states with the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, the U [...] In the determination by the Council of the general suitability of an applicant for observer status the Council will, inter alia, take into account the extent to which observers: • Accept and support the objectives of the Arctic Council defined in the Ottawa declaration. [...] The admission of new observer states raises the question Policy rEcommEndations of how to build trust between the new observers and While the bids of East Asian states challenge traditional the PPs, as East Asian states have only paid lip service conceptions of the role of the Arctic Council, there is little to the role of the PPs as stewards of the Arctic region doubt that the Arctic is constantl [...] Nevertheless, Arctic states must remain the notion of indigenous autonomy in international cognizant of areas of possible discord, particularly in the affairs, which the role of the PPs in the Arctic Council areas of high seas fisheries management and shipping effectively embodies.

The Arctic has, for some forty years, been among the most innovative policy environments in the world. The region has developed impressive systems for intra-regional cooperation, responded to the challenges of the rapid environmental change, empowered and engaged with Indigenous peoples, and dealt with the multiple challenges of natural resource development. The Palgrave Handbook on Arctic Policy and Politics has drawn on scholars from many countries and academic disciplines to focus on the central theme of Arctic policy innovation. The portrait that emerges from these chapters is of a complex, fluid policy environment, shaped by internal, national and global dynamics and by a wide range of political, legal, economic, and social transitions. The Arctic is a complex place from a political perspective and is on the verge of becoming even more so. Effective, proactive and forward-looking policy innovation will be required if the Far North is to be able to address its challenges and capitalize on its opportunities.