National Strategy for the Arctic Region

National Strategy for the Arctic Region
Name	National Strategy for the Arctic Region
Caption	Arctic region
Date signed	2013
Parties	United States
Location	Washington, D.C.

Contents

National Strategy for the Arctic Region The National Strategy for the Arctic Region is a United States policy document that articulates strategic priorities for the Arctic involving Barack Obama, John Kerry, Department of Defense (United States), Department of Homeland Security, and Department of State (United States). It addresses intersecting interests that include stewardship discussed alongside actors such as United States Coast Guard, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Department of the Interior (United States), and the Federal Aviation Administration. The Strategy situates U.S. objectives relative to external parties like Russia, Canada, Kingdom of Norway, and Kingdom of Denmark (via Greenland).

Background and Policy Objectives

The Strategy builds on precedents such as the Arctic Council, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Svalbard Treaty, and historical events like the Cold War and the Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta resource debates, aligning policy with institutions including Congress of the United States, National Security Council (United States), Government Accountability Office, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and Arctic Research Commission. It frames objectives around homeland priorities referenced by Presidential Policy Directive 8 and lawmaking carried out by committees in the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. The document references operational partners such as North American Aerospace Defense Command, Joint Chiefs of Staff (United States), United States Northern Command, and local administrations like the State of Alaska.

Security considerations integrate planning from United States Northern Command with assets such as the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), Raven-class aircraft, and platforms operated by the United States Navy and United States Air Force. The Strategy references Arctic security precedents involving NATO, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and interactions with Russian Armed Forces and Norwegian Armed Forces. Law enforcement and search-and-rescue roles call on the United States Coast Guard and treaties such as Search and Rescue Agreement (Arctic), while strategic assessments cite scenarios related to Aleutian Islands logistics, Distant Early Warning Line, and basing comparable to Thule Air Base. Interagency coordination includes the Department of Defense (United States), Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency, and indigenous liaison structures similar to relationships with Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act stakeholders.

The Strategy addresses commercial interests tied to resources near Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea, and Bering Sea citing agencies such as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, United States Geological Survey, National Petroleum Council, and firms comparable to Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil. Transportation and infrastructure plans reference corridors like the Northern Sea Route, the Northwest Passage, and ports used historically by Nome, Alaska and Kotzebue, Alaska while involving regulators such as the Federal Aviation Administration and Federal Communications Commission. Energy development interrelates with statutes like the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act and institutions such as Alaska Department of Natural Resources and corporate actors in the hydrocarbon sector. Fisheries management invokes North Pacific Fishery Management Council, International Pacific Halibut Commission, and rights adjudicated in forums akin to the International Court of Justice for maritime delimitation.

Environmental stewardship aligns the Strategy with scientific programs from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, United States Geological Survey, and international mechanisms such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The document considers impacts observed at sites like Barrow, Alaska (now Utqiaġvik), Svalbard, and Franz Josef Land and references ecological concerns documented in collaborations with World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International, and The Nature Conservancy. Climate trends influencing sea-ice extent have been measured by satellite missions such as Landsat and ICESat, and assessed in reports by National Research Council (United States). Pollution and marine mammal protections involve statutes and agencies comparable to the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Strategy emphasizes consultation with indigenous stakeholders including organizations such as the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Inuit Circumpolar Council, Arctic Athabaskan Council, Aleut International Association, and regional entities like the North Slope Borough. It references legal frameworks such as the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act and decisions from forums like the Indian Health Service consultations, while acknowledging cultural sites across Yukon–Kuskokwim Delta villages and traditional knowledge documented by institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution. Implementation involves partnerships with entities such as Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Congress of American Indians, and local governments in Anchorage, Alaska and Juneau, Alaska.

Research priorities coordinate activities by National Science Foundation, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Arctic Research Commission, and university programs at University of Alaska Fairbanks, University of Washington, and Harvard University collaborating through networks like the U.S. Arctic Research Commission. Infrastructure projects reference investments in ports similar to Nome, Alaska upgrades, airfields like Eareckson Air Station, and communications hosted by Alaska Communications Systems Group. Observational networks connect to platforms such as NOAA Ship Fairweather, RV Polarstern, and icebreakers such as USCGC Healy (WAGB-20), while satellite monitoring is provided by NOAA satellites and cooperative missions with European Space Agency.

The Strategy situates U.S. policy within multilateral fora including the Arctic Council, United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, NATO, and bilateral arrangements with Canada, Kingdom of Norway, Kingdom of Denmark, Iceland, and Finland. It references diplomatic engagements led by Department of State (United States) envoys and ambassadors to capitals such as Ottawa, Oslo, Copenhagen, Reykjavík, and Helsinki, and cooperative scientific agreements linking institutions like the Polar Research Institute of China and P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology. Governance mechanisms include coordination with the International Maritime Organization and search-and-rescue frameworks under International Civil Aviation Organization standards.