The Polar Silk Road and China's role in Arctic governance

Heljar Havnes

doi:10.24294/jipd.v4i1.1166

Home - JIPD - Volume 4 - Issue 1

Submit to JIPD

Journal Browser

Volume | Year

Issue

• Current lssue

View All

News and Announcements

View All

The Polar Silk Road and China's role in Arctic governance

Heljar Havnes

Journal of Infrastructure Policy and Development 2020, 4(1), 1166; https://doi.org/10.24294/jipd.v4i1.1166

Submitted：12 Mar 2020

Accepted：18 Mar 2020

Published：13 Apr 2020

Download PDF(399.20KB)

Cite

XML

Abstract

The People's Republic of China (PRC) wants to become a key regional actor in the Arctic. PRC's underlying priority in the region is gaining access to commercial opportunities from trade and natural resources. To this end, PRC is building its domestic capacities for research and commercial development in the Arctic, increasing its involvement in multilateral forums on Arctic governance and deepening ties to Arctic nations, especially Russia.

Attitudes towards PRC among Arctic nations are diverging, but Beijing generally faces high levels of skepticism and opposition to its Arctic involvement, explicitly grounded in perceptions of PRC as a state undermining the rules-based international order and potential military build-up in the high north.

The analytical framework in this article builds on an outline authored by Exner-Pirot in 2012 (Exner-Pirot, 2012) to detail the current schools of thought within Arctic governance, and builds on it by including more recent developments in Arctic governance, incorporating the updated Arctic policies of most Arctic countries and connecting it to PRC.

This article contends that Beijing wants to change the status quo of Arctic governance and shift it towards a more accommodating approach to non-Arctic states. This article finds, based on the stated Arctic strategies of the eight Arctic states and PRC, that there are different views on Arctic governance where Arctic countries for the most part indicate an openness to a Chinese entry into the Arctic, albeit in diverging ways. This creates a complex governance scenario for PRC to navigate as it seeks to become a key Arctic player

Keywords

References

Aker Arctic. (2019) Xue Long 2. https://akerarctic.fi/en/reference/xue-long-2

Aksnes D, Osipov I, Moskaleva O and Kullerud L (2016). Arctic Research Publication Trends: A Pilot Study. Rovaniemi, Finland: University of the Arctic (UArctic).

Andersson P, Zeuthen JW and Kalvig P (2018). “Chinese mining in Greenland: Arctic access or access to minerals?” Arctic Yearbook.

Arctic Council (2007). Arctic Council Meeting of Senior Arctic Officials, Draft Minutes, 12–13 April 2007, Tromsø, Norway. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/bitstream/handle/11374/371/ACSAO-NO02_6_MINUTES_SAO_MTG_April_07.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.

____ (2009a). Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment 2009.

____ (2009b). Senior Arctic Official (SAO) Report to Ministers, Tromsø, Norway, April 2009. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/bitstream/handle/11374/1555/ACMM06_Tromsoe_2009_SAO_Report_to_Ministers_En.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.

____ (2013). Arctic Council Open Access Repository. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/bitstream/handle/11374/1272/AC_SAO_CA01_Doc6-7_SDWG_WG_Pr.

____ (2018). Observers. https://arctic-council.org/index.php/en/about-us/arctic-council/observers.

ARCTIS Knowledge Hub (2008). Russian Federation Policy for the Arctic to 2020. http://www.arctis-search.com/Russian+Federation+Policy+for+the+Arctic+to+2020.

Asian Maritime Transparency Initiative (2019, 25 January). How is China Modernizing Its Navy? https://amti.csis.org/chinapower-how-is-china-modernizing-navy.

Bell J (2019, 12 February). “Canada’s new Arctic policy could be done by June, minister says”. Nunatsiaq News. https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/canadas-new-arctic-policy-could-be-done-by-june-minister-says/.

Belt and Road Portal (2017, 30 June). Heilongjiang Plays Significant Role in Belt and Road Initiative. https://eng.yidaiyilu.gov.cn/qwyw/rdxw/17605.htm.

Bertelsen RG, Xing L and Gregersen MH (2014). Conceptualizing the Chinese Dream, a Historical Approach from Hard Power to Soft Power: The Case of Science Diplomacy in the Arctic. Reykjavik, Iceland: Icelandic Arctic Cooperation Network.

Bloomberg News (2019, 23 April). “China’s Belt and Road cracks down on corruption in image revamp”. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-22/china-belt-and-road-cleanup.

Buixadé Farré A, Stephenson SR, Chen L, et al. (2014). “Commercial Arctic shipping through the Northeast Passage: Routes, resources, governance, technology, and infrastructure”. Polar Geography, 37(4): 298–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/1088937X.2014.965769.

CCTV Video News Agency (2018, April 12). President Xi Reviews Navy in South China Sea [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrL75nxatoY.

Chen M and Zheng Y (2008). “China’s regional disparity and its policy responses”. China & World Economy, 16(4): 16–32. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1749-124X.2008.00119.x.

Chellaney, B. (2017, January 23). China's Debt-Trap Diplomacy. https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/china-one-belt-one-road-loans-debt-by-brahma-chellaney-2017-01

China COSCO Shipping Corporation Limited (2018). Tian En, Chinese Ship on Maiden Arctic Voyage, Docks in Dutch Port. http://en.coscocs.com/art/2018/9/9/art_6924_81556.html.

China Internet Information Center (2010). China’s First Arctic Expedition. http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/40958.htm.

Chinese Academy of Sciences (2017). China’s Arctic Expeditions Increase to Once a Year. http://english.cas.cn/newsroom/china_research/201710/t20171011_183796.shtml.

Cochrane SG, Deng S, Singh A, et al. (2019, January). “China’s provincial economies: Growing together or pulling apart?” Moody’s Analytics.

Conservation of Flora and Fauna (2013). Arctic Biodiversity: Assessment Status and Trends in Arctic Biodiversity. Akureyri, Iceland: Arctic Council.

Corell H (2007). “Reflections on the possibilities and limitations of a binding legal regime”. Environmental Policy and Law, 37(4): 321–324.

____ (2016). “The Arctic and the present geopolitical situation”. In: Nordquist MH, Moore JN and Long R (Eds.), Challenges of the Changing Arctic: Continental Shelf, Navigation, and Fisheries. Leiden, the Netherlands: Brill Nijhoff.

Drozdiak N and Wienberg C (2019, 4 February). “Huawei staff expelled from Denmark after work permit checks”. Bloomberg News. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-04/huawei-staff-expelled-from-denmark-after-work-permit-inspection.

Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the United States of America (2012). Full text of Hu Jintao’s Report at 18th Party Congress. http://www.china-embassy.org/eng/zt/18th_CPC_National_Congress_Eng/t992917.htm.

European Commission (2019). Agreement to Prevent Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=uriserv:OJ.L_.2019.073.01.0003.01.ENG.

Exner-Pirot H (2012). “New directions for governance in the Arctic region”. Arctic Yearbook.

Freeman, C. (2017, May 3). On Hostile Coexistence with China. https://chasfrreman.net/on-hostile-coexistence-with-china

Government of Canada (2009). Canada’s Northern Strategy: Our North, Our Heritage, Our Future. http://library.arcticportal.org/1885/1/canada.pdf.

____ (2010). Statement on Canada’s Arctic Foreign Policy: Exercising Sovereignty and Promoting Canada’s Northern Strategy Abroad. http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2017/amc-gac/FR5-111-2010-eng.pdf.

____ (2019). Toward a New Arctic Policy Framework. https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1499951681722/1537884604444.

Government of Iceland (2010). A Parliamentary Resolution on Iceland’s Arctic Policy. https://www.government.is/media/utanrikisraduneyti-media/media/nordurlandaskrifstofa/A-Parliamentary-Resolution-on-ICE-Arctic-Policy-approved-by-Althingi.pdf.

____ (2013a). Free Trade Agreement Between the Government of Iceland and The Government of the People’s Republic of China. https://www.government.is/media/utanrikisraduneyti-media/media/fta-kina/Iceland-China.pdf.

____ (2013b). Joint Statement between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of Iceland on Comprehensively Deepening Bilateral Cooperation. https://www.government.is/media/forsaetisraduneyti-media/media/frettir1/Joint-statement-of-PMs-Iceland-China-2013.pdf.

Guan W (2018, 16 March). China’s Congress Approves Government Reshuffle Plan [Video]. China Global Television Network. https://america.cgtn.com/2018/03/16/chinas-congress-approves-government-reshuffle-plan.

Havnes H and Seland JM (2019). The Increasing Security Focus in China’s Arctic Policy. Washington, DC: The Arctic Institute. https://www.thearcticinstitute.org/increasing-security-focus-china-arctic-policy/

Hellenic Shipping News (2019, 8 June). Sovcomflot, NOVATEK, COSCO, Silk Road Fund Sign Joint Venture Agreement. https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/sovcomflot-novatek-cosco-silk-road-fund-sign-joint-venture-agreement/.

Icelandic Arctic Cooperation Network (2014). 2nd China-Nordic Arctic Cooperation Symposium “North Meets East” (1/8) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yChQZVPjGCA.

Ilulissat Declaration (2008). https://cil.nus.edu.sg/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/2008-Ilulissat-Declaration.pdf.

International Maritime Organization (2013). “Comments on the outcome of BLG 17”. MEPC 65/11/4. London, UK: Marine Environment Protection Committee.

____ (2015). “Consideration and adoption of Amendments to Mandatory Instruments—Comments on the draft International Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters”. MSC 94/3/15. London, UK: Maritime Safety Committee.

JointFish (2019). History. https://www.jointfish.com/eng/THE-FISHERIES-COMMISSION/HISTORY.html

Korea Maritime Institute (2013). Arctic Policy of the Republic of Korea. Seoul, South Korea: Korea Maritime Institute.

Li L (2018). The People’s Republic of China 2018 Observer Review. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/bitstream/handle/11374/2251/CHINA_2018-05_Review-Report.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.

Li W and Huang Y (2016). “International code for ships operating in polar waters: Challenges to polar shipping safety rules in China”. Advances in Polar Science, 27(3): 146–153. https://doi.org/10.13679/j.advps.2016.3.00146.

Liu X, Wang X, Ling X, Zheng J, Wang L(2014). “Latest progress in Arctic oil and gas exploration and development technology (in Chinese)”. Ocean Development and Management, (1): 37-41. https://doi.org/10.3969/j.issn.1005-9857.2014.01.08t.

LNG World News (2019a). CNPC Unit Grabs 10 Pct Stake in Novatek’s Arctic LNG 2 Project. https://www.lngworldnews.com/cnpc-unit-grabs-10-pct-stake-in-novateks-arctic-lng-2-project/.

____ (2019b). Novatek, CNOOC Ink Arctic LNG 2 Stake Deal. https://www.lngworldnews.com/novatek-cnooc-ink-arctic-lng-2-stake-deal/.

Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Sweden (2011). Sweden’s Strategy for the Arctic Region. https://www.government.se/49b746/contentassets/85de9103bbbe4373b55eddd7f71608da/swedens-strategy-for-the-arctic-region.

Ministry of Defense of Japan (2018). Defense of Japan 2018. https://www.mod.go.jp/e/publ/w_paper/pdf/2018/DOJ2018_Full_1130.pdf.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (2011). The Arctic. http://um.dk/en/foreign-policy/the-arctic/.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China (2014). Position Paper of the Government of the People's Republic of China on the Matter of Jurisdiction in the South China Sea Arbitration Initiated by the Republic of the Philippines. https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/zxxx_662805/t1217147.shtml.

____ (2017). Full Text of President Xi’s Speech at Opening of Belt and Road Forum. https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/wjdt_665385/zyjh_665391/t1465819.shtml.

Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China (2015). Full Text: China’s Military Strategy. http://eng.mod.gov.cn/Press/2015-05/26/content_4586805_4.htm.

Northern Pacific Halibut Act of 1982, U.S. Code Title 16, Chapter 10, Subchapter IV (1982). https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/16/chapter-10/subchapter-IV.

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (2018). Foreign Policy Address to the Storting 2018. https://www.regjeringen.no/en/aktuelt/storting_address180227/id2591293/.

Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Norwegian Ministry of Local Government and Modernisation (2017). Norway’s Arctic Strategy—Between Geopolitics and Social Development. https://www.regjeringen.no/contentassets/fad46f0404e14b2a9b551ca7359c1000/arctic-strategy.pdf.

Office of the Secretary of Defense (2019). Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China. Washington, DC: Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Permanent Court of Arbitration (2015). Arbitration Between the Republic of the Philippines and the People’s Republic of China. https://www.pcacases.com/web/sendAttach/1503.

Polar Research Institute of China (2019, 18 February). “Research vessel, icebreaker “Xuelong”. PRIC News. http://www.pric.org.cn/EN/detail/content.aspx?id=ced74186-b947-4338-a787-aa9da1237ff5.

Prime Minister’s Office of Finland (2013). “Finland’s strategy for the Arctic Region 2013”. Prime Minister’s Office Publications 16/2013. https://vnk.fi/documents/10616/334509/Arktinen+strategia+2013+en.pdf/6b6fb723-40ec-4c17-b286-5b5910fbecf4.

Publications Office of the EU (2018). Proposal for a Council Decision on the Signing, on Behalf of the European Union, of the Agreement to Prevent Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in the Central Arctic Ocean. https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/GA/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52018PC0454.

Rajah R., Dayant A., and Pryke J. (2019) Ocean of Debt? Belt and Road and Debt Diplomacy in the Pacific. Lowy Institute

Rowe EW (2018). Arctic Governance: Power in Cross-Border Cooperation. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press. https://doi.org/10.7765/9781526131645.

Rowe EW and Blakkisrud H (2014). “A new kind of Arctic power? Russia’s policy discourses and diplomatic practices in the Circumpolar North”. Geopolitics, 19(1): 66–85. https://doi.org/10.1080/14650045.2013.789863.

Scissors D (2018). China’s Global Investment: Neither the US nor Belt and Road. Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute.

Sengupta S (2019, 6 May). “United States rattles Arctic talks with a sharp warning to China and Russia”. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/06/climate/pompeo-arctic-china-russia.html?module=inline.

Soukas J (2018, 23 November). “China eyes economic, strategic benefits in the Arctic”. GBTimes. https://gbtimes.com/china-eyes-economic-strategic-benefits-in-the-arctic.

Sustainable Development Working Group (2017). The Economy of the North 2015. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/handle/11374/1946.

Tømmerbakke SG (2019, 8 May). “Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Søreide: Not an unexpected outcome”. High North News. https://www.highnorthnews.com/en/not-unexpected-outcome.

The Government Offices of Sweden (2019). Sweden Assumes Chairmanship of the Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO) in 2019. https://www.government.se/articles/2019/01/sweden-assumes-chairmanship-of-the-nordic-defence-cooperation-nordefco-in-2019/.

The State Council Information Office of the People’s Republic of China (2018). Full text: China’s Arctic Policy. http://english.gov.cn/archive/white_paper/2018/01/26/content_281476026660336.htm.

The State Council of the People’s Republic of China (2018). China’s Actions and Goals for Ecological Advancement. http://english.gov.cn/policies/policy_watch/2018/05/19/content_281476153087368.htm.

The White House (2013). National Strategy for the Arctic Region. https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/default/files/docs/nat_arctic_strategy.pdf.

Uddannelses- og Forskningsministeriet (2016). Strategi for Forskning og Uddannelse Vedrørende Arktis [Research Strategy and Education Concerning the Arctic]. https://ufm.dk/publikationer/2016/filer/fi_rapport_arktisk_strategi_web.pdf.

United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (2019). Submissions, through the Secretary-General of the United Nations, to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, Pursuant to Article 76, Paragraph 8, of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982. https://www.un.org/Depts/los/clcs_new/commission_submissions.htm.

United Nations Treaty Series (1988). Canada and United States of America: Agreement on Arctic Cooperation. https://treaties.un.org/doc/publication/unts/volume%201852/volume-1852-i-31529-english.pdf.

United Nations (1982). United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. http://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/unclos_e.pdf.

____ (2019). United Nations Treaty Collection. https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVII-7-d&chapter=27&clang=_en.

US Coast Guard (2019). Arctic Strategic Outlook. https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/5973939/Arctic-Strategic-Outlook-APR-2019.pdf.

US Department of State (2019). Bilateral Issues. https://www.state.gov/e/oes/ocns/fish/bilateral/.

US Department of Defense (2019). Report to Congress: Department of Defense Arctic Strategy. https://media.defense.gov/2019/Jun/06/2002141657/-1/-1/1/2019-DOD-ARCTIC-STRATEGY.PDF.

US Energy Information Administration (2012). Arctic Oil and Natural Gas Resources. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=4650.

US Geological Survey (2008). Circum-Arctic Resource Appraisal: Estimates of Undiscovered Oil and Gas North of the Arctic Circle. https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2008/3049/fs2008-3049.pdf.

Wahlén CB (2018, 9 October). “Nine countries, EU sign agreement to prevent unregulated fishing in Central Arctic Ocean”. SDG Knowledge Hub. http://sdg.iisd.org/news/nine-countries-eu-sign-agreement-to-prevent-unregulated-fishing-in-central-arctic-ocean/.

Werchan, J. (2019). Required US Capabilites for Combatting Russian Activities Abroad. Washington, DC: United States Deprtment of Defense

Wicklén J, Jåma S and Olofsson D (2019). “FOI varnar för Svenskt rymdsamarbete med Kina [FOI warns of Swedish space cooperation with China]”. SVT Nyheter. https://www.svt.se/nyheter/inrikes/foi-varnar-for-svenskt-rymdsamarbete-med-kina?cmpid=del:tw:20190113:foi-varnar-for-svenskt-rymdsamarbete-med-kina:nyh:lp.

Wong C (2018). “Bold strategy or irrational exuberance can China's fiscal foundation support the Belt and Road Initiative?” In: Fingar T and Oi J (Eds.), China’s Future: Challenges, Choices, and Contingencies [In press]. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

World Bank (2019a). Belt and Road Economics: Opportunities and Risks of Transport Corridors. Washington, DC: World Bank.

____ (2019b, 18 June). “Success of China’s Belt & Road Initiative depends on deep policy reforms, study finds”. Press Release No. 201. http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2019/06/18/success-of-chinas-belt-road-initiative-depends-on-deep-policy-reforms-study-finds?cid=SHR_SitesShareFB_EN_EXT.

Xinhua (2017a, 1 November). “Xi stresses commitment to good China-Russia relations”. http://www.xinhuanet.com//english/2017-11/01/c_136720942.htm.

Yang J (2018). “Zhōngguó de běijí zhèngcè jiědú [An interpretation of China’s Arctic policy]”. Pacific Journal, 26(3): 1–11.

Yang X (2016). China’s 2016 Observer Activities Report. https://oaarchive.arctic-council.org/bitstream/handle/11374/1860/EDOCS-4018-v1-2016-11-26_China_Observer_activity_report.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.

Yin D (2009). China’s attitude toward foreign NGOs”. Washington University Global Studies Law Review, 8(3): 520–543.

Young O (2009). “The Arctic in play: Governance in a time of rapid change”. The International Journal of Marine and Coastal Law, 24(2): 423–442. https://doi.org/10.1163/157180809X421833.

Østreng W, Eger KM, Fløistad B, et al. (2013). Shipping in Arctic Waters. Berlin, Germany: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-16790-4

Previous
article in this issue

Next
article in this issue