Arctic Council possible contender for a Nobel peace prize

Record ID: 1434242

  • Title: Arctic Council possible contender for a Nobel peace prize
  • Date: 23rd September 2019
  • Summary: IN AIR, SVALBARD, NORWAY (FILE - 2018) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MOUNTAINS AND SEA TOWN OF NY-AALESUND AS PLANE IS LANDING NY-AALESUND, SVALBARD, NORWAY (FILE - 2018) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MOUNTAINS, SEA, ICE VIEW OF HOUSES, SEA AND MOUNTAINS VARIOUS OF PEOPLE WALKING IN TOWN CENTRE VARIOUS OF SNOW COVERED HOUSES
  • Embargoed: 7th October 2019 18:30
  • Keywords: Arctic Council Nobel peace prize Nobel announcement climate favourite
  • Location: ROVANIEMI, FINLAND / FAIRBANKS, ALASKA, UNITED STATES / IN AIR AND NY-AALESUND, NORWAY / NUUK, GREENLAND
  • City: ROVANIEMI, FINLAND / FAIRBANKS, ALASKA, UNITED STATES / IN AIR AND NY-AALESUND, NORWAY / NUUK, GREENLAND
  • Country: Finland
  • Topics: Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA003AYG7WHZ
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The winner of this year's Nobel Peace Prize will be announced in Oslo on October 11 and one of the many names mentioned in the pre-announcement buzz is the Arctic Council.
    Formed in 1996, the Arctic Council is made up of eight nations bordering the Arctic; The United States, Canada, Russia, Finland, Norway, Denmark and Iceland, with the region's indigenous populations also represented.
    The council is the leading intergovernmental forum for cooperation, coordination and interaction among the countries on common Arctic issues, in particular on sustainable development and environmental protection.
    China has had observer status at the Council since 2013 and has been increasingly active in the region, outlining a plan for a "Polar Silk Road" last year.
    The Arctic Council's remit excludes military matters.
    The last meeting of the group was held in Rovaniemi in Finland earlier this year. The meeting was supposed to frame a two-year agenda to balance the challenge of global warming with sustainable development of mineral wealth, but ended with no final declaration.
    Sources with knowledge of the discussions said the United States balked at signing a final declaration, as it disagreed with wording that climate change was a serious threat to the Arctic.
    Interest in the Arctic region has increased recently, with countries scrambling to boost their presence in the region.
    With Arctic temperatures rising at twice the rate of the rest of the globe, the melting ice is creating potential new shipping lanes and has opened much of the world's last untapped reserves of oil and gas to commercial exploitation.
    The Nobel announcement will take place on Friday October 11.
    (Production: Ilze Filks)
  • Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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