Rejected Arctic Council membership keeps EU in the cold

摘要

The European Union's most effective forum for voicing its views would be the Arctic Council, if it is allowed to join. Established by the Ottawa Declaration in 1996, it links all slates with Arctic territorial claims and is one of the main arenas for countries to coordinate their efforts in the region. The Council also allows non-Arctic states and NCOs to enjoy observer status. The EU submitted its application to be an observer in 2008, but the following year this, along with similar observer status bids by China, Italy and South Korea, was rejected at the Council's meeting in Tromso, Norway.