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An intergovernmental forum of eight Arctic states established by the Ottawa Declaration of 1996, with India as an observer since 2013.
The Arctic Council is the leading intergovernmental forum for cooperation on Arctic issues. It was established on 19 September 1996 when Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the United States signed the Ottawa Declaration. Its remit covers sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic, and it explicitly involves Arctic indigenous communities in its work. It is a forum rather than a treaty organisation: it has no power to make binding law and its mandate expressly excludes military security.
Type: BodyEstablished by the Ottawa Declaration on 19 September 1996
Eight member states: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States
Six indigenous organisations hold the unique status of Permanent Participants, with full consultation rights
Non-Arctic states, intergovernmental bodies and NGOs may be admitted as Observers
Focus areas are sustainable development and environmental protection
Its mandate expressly excludes matters of military security
Decisions are taken by consensus of the eight member states
Frequency: The Arctic Council and India's polar engagement appear regularly in UPSC Prelims international relations questions
Arctic Council
Intergovernmental forum for Arctic cooperation on sustainable development and environmental protection
National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research
India's nodal institution for polar research, which operates the Himadri station at Ny-Alesund, Svalbard
19 September 1996, by the Ottawa Declaration
Eight — Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, United States
Six Arctic indigenous peoples' organisations
Observer since 2013
China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore
Tromso, Norway
Himadri, at Ny-Alesund, Svalbard
The Arctic matters far beyond the eight states that own it. Sea ice there is retreating faster than almost anywhere on earth, which is opening shipping routes such as the Northern Sea Route that could substantially shorten voyages between Europe and Asia, and making previously inaccessible hydrocarbon and mineral deposits commercially reachable. That combination of navigation, resources and climate change has drawn in states with no Arctic territory at all. India's interest is scientific in origin, through its Himadri station at Svalbard and the link between Arctic warming and the monsoon system, but it is also strategic, since Arctic shipping routes and resource flows would reshape the trade geography India operates in. A parliamentary committee has recommended that India appoint a dedicated Polar Ambassador and seek a fuller role in the Council.
Arctic Council: established by the Ottawa Declaration, 19 September 1996
Eight members: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, USA
Six indigenous organisations are Permanent Participants
India became an Observer in 2013, with China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore
A forum, not a treaty body; cannot make binding law
Military security is excluded from its mandate
Secretariat at Tromso, Norway; India's Arctic station is Himadri at Svalbard
On 19 September 1996, when the eight Arctic states signed the Ottawa Declaration establishing it as a forum for cooperation on sustainable development and environmental protection.
Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, the Russian Federation, Sweden and the United States — the eight states with territory above the Arctic Circle.
India has been an Observer since 2013, admitted alongside China, Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Observers may attend meetings and contribute to working groups but do not vote.
Six organisations of Arctic indigenous peoples, including the Inuit Circumpolar Council and the Saami Council. They have full consultation rights, a status unique among international bodies.