US Administration Hopes Arctic Council Will Meet in Spring
The Arctic Council is made up of the eight Arctic states – the United States, Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation and Sweden. (Photo: Arctic Council)
The US administration believes that a ministerial-level meeting of the Arctic Council could be held in the spring despite the pandemic.
“The premier forum, really, for discussing matters of Arctic governance is the Arctic Council,” Acting Assistant Secretary at the US Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs, Philip Reeker, said during a press briefing held via teleconference on 19 March.
Reeker points out that the premier forum for discussing Arctic matters is the Arctic Council.
The briefing took place before the upcoming travel of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Belgium for the NATO Ministerial meeting.
“We expect to have a meeting later in the spring, without any details pinned down yet, of the Arctic Council, a ministerial-level meeting. And that’s a forum we have used, I think very successfully, over many years to deal with these Arctic issues,” he said.
He also noted that the United States envisions the Arctic region as one that is free of conflict, where nations act responsibly and where the economic and energy resources are developed in a sustainable and transparent manner, with respect to the environment and also keeping in mind the interests and cultures of indigenous people there.
“So it’s really a comprehensive approach that we [the United States – Ed.] are seeking to the Arctic region, and we give it – give attention to a full range of interests,” Philip Reeker said.
