1985 Polar Sea controversy
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The 1985 Polar Sea controversy was a diplomatic event triggered by plans for the navigation of through the
Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...
from
Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland i ...
to
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
without formal authorization from the
Canadian government The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown-in ...
. It was the United States' position that the Northwest Passage was an international strait open to shipping and it sought only to notify Canada rather than ask for permission.Briggs, p.437 Publication of the plans enraged the Canadian public opinion as it was regarded as a breach and disregard of sovereignty and prompted the government to take preventive measures in defending Canada's arctic territories.Killaby, p.35 The U.S. never recognized Canada's claim over the Northwest passage but nevertheless, the two countries reached an agreement two years later which stipulated that in the future, the U.S. would ask permission before navigating the disputed waters. Canada's sovereignty over the region's waters was still a contentious issue as of 2010 and is likely to become of increasing importance as
climate change in the Arctic Major environmental issues caused by contemporary climate change in the Arctic region range from the well-known, such as the loss of sea ice or melting of the Greenland ice sheet, to more obscure, but deeply significant issues, such as permaf ...
has the potential to render those waters more accessible to commercial ships and the thawing of the sea ice of making oil drilling easier.Killaby, p.33


Background


Exploring

Ever since the colonization of America, the Northwest Passage had always been of special interest since it was speculated that it could offer a shortcut to Asia. Many attempts at crossing were made but very few succeeded due to the very unforgiving conditions that prevail in the Canadian
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...
for most of the year. The
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
explorer Exploration refers to the historical practice of discovering remote lands. It is studied by geographers and historians. Two major eras of exploration occurred in human history: one of convergence, and one of divergence. The first, covering most ...
Sir John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. After serving in wars against Napoleonic France and the United States, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and through t ...
actually found a passage between 1845 and 1847 but this achievement was not known until years later as he and his crew had perished on the
journey Journey or journeying may refer to: * Travel, the movement of people between distant geographical locations ** Day's journey, a measurement of distance ** Road trip, a long-distance journey on the road Animals * Journey (horse), a thoroughbred ra ...
.
Robert McClure Vice-Admiral Sir Robert John Le Mesurier McClure (28 January 1807 – 17 October 1873) was an Irish explorer of Scots descent who explored the Arctic. In 1854 he traversed the Northwest Passage by boat and sledge, and was the first to ci ...
was the first explorer to survive the expedition in 1850 but he completed the journey on a
sled A sled, skid, sledge, or sleigh is a land vehicle that slides across a surface, usually of ice or snow. It is built with either a smooth underside or a separate body supported by two or more smooth, relatively narrow, longitudinal runners ...
. It is only in 1906 that the passage was navigated entirely on water by the
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
explorer
Roald Amundsen Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen (, ; ; 16 July 1872 – ) was a Norwegian explorer of polar regions. He was a key figure of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration. Born in Borge, Østfold, Norway, Amundsen beg ...
. However, construction of the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...
had already begun at that time and its completion in 1914 lessened the need for this route.


The Cold War

It was not until the Second World War that the passage was again explored. With the onset of the Cold War, the Canadian Arctic became the first line of defense against the
Soviets Soviet people ( rus, сове́тский наро́д, r=sovyétsky naród), or citizens of the USSR ( rus, гра́ждане СССР, grázhdanye SSSR), was an umbrella demonym for the population of the Soviet Union. Nationality policy in ...
so the U.S. and Canada developed a tight cooperation as the imperative to use this mostly empty territory as a buffer increased. Thus, many early warning systems such as the DEW Line, the
Pinetree Line The Pinetree Line was a series of radar stations located across the northern United States and southern Canada at about the 50th parallel north, along with a number of other stations located on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. Run by North Ame ...
and the
Mid-Canada Line The Mid-Canada Line (MCL), also known as the McGill Fence, was a line of radar stations running east–west across the middle of Canada, used to provide early warning of a Soviet bomber attack on North America. It was built to supplement the ...
were deployed in this region with the North Warning System still in use today.


SS ''Manhattan'' and the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act

Following the discovery of large oil reserves in
Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
, the urge to make the Northwest Passage navigable rose substantially. In 1969, the ice-strengthened
oil tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined cru ...
made the full voyage with the help of Canadian and American icebreakers. While the voyage was carried out with much difficulty, the mere fact that it was possible for a commercial ship to make it from Alaska to the East Coast was of much significance and prompted many questions over the passage's status. Despite the cooperation of the two countries and the presence of observers on the tanker, public opinion reacted over this alleged breach of sovereignty, pushing the Canadian government to enact the
Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act The ''Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act'' (1970, R.S.C. 1985) (the ''Act'') is a Government of Canada statute to prevent pollution of areas of the arctic waters adjacent to the mainland and islands of the Canadian arctic. The Government of Can ...
of 1970. The act contained a reservation precluding it from review from the
World Court The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
which was removed in 1985 but at the time of the Polar Sea controversy, the act could still be considered unilateral.


Voyage

In 1985, USCGC ''Polar Sea'' sparked controversy by navigating the Northwest passage from Greenland to Alaska without formal authorization from the Canadian government. At the time, ''Polar Sea'' was on a routine resupply operation and it was deemed by the
United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...
that utilizing the Northwest Passage instead of the Panama Canal would yield considerable savings in time. Permission for the voyage was not officially sought by the United States government because of its position that the Northwest Passage is an international strait open to shipping. Conversely, the Canadian government opinion was that the passage was within Canada's border. Still, Canada was notified of the impending voyage and decided to cooperate with the Americans so as not to prejudice each state's legal position amidst a climate already made tense by the Cold War. Hence, it provided Canadian observers that were to stay aboard the ship for its entire resupply operation. As plans for the icebreaker's voyage became public, controversy arose in parliament with sides claiming the icebreaker's voyage would violate sovereignty while others stated it did not and called the argument "deliberately anti-American".


Controversy

Weighted against the strategic and economic interests in maintaining the status quo, it was deemed that the political risks incurred by the voyage of ''Polar Sea'' in 1985 were worth taking so it was decided that ''Polar Sea'' should proceed.Briggs, p.440 The magnitude of the reaction was underestimated and pressures from the public opinion on the
Mulroney government The Twenty-Fourth Canadian Ministry was the cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. It governed Canada from 17 September 1984 to 25 June 1993, including the 33rd Canadian Parliament and most of the 34th. The government was formed ...
forced it to take preventive measures. First were the
Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...
populations of the region who were concerned about the risks that an unregulated commercial passage would threaten their livelihood and compromise their ethnic integrity. Then, nationalists groups further increased pressure on the government through editorials in the press and public protests. One group even announced plans during the ''Polar Sea'' voyage to place Canadian flags across the path of the icebreaker. This actual plan was not carried out but Canadian students and Inuit activists managed to drop leaflets in a cylinder wrapped with a Canadian Flag onto the deck of the ship near Melville Island. Their message requested that the crew return the icebreaker to international waters.Briggs, p.441 Finally, the Soviet diplomacy spoke in support of the public outcry by stating that it believed in Canada's right to sovereignty on its Northwest passage just like the USSR believed the Northeast Passage belonged to them. The U.S did not at the time recognize Canada's rights to the Northwest Passage. Interviewed following the USSR's statement, the Bureau of European and Canadian Affairs simply replied that it "can only repeat that the U.S. government believes the same navigational principles to apply to both passages. They are international straits. To say more than that would be speculative." In alignment with its foreign policy and as mandated by its geographical situation, the United States had consistently defended its right under international law to transit international straits and routes. Even when it formally ended its advocacy of the three-mile limit in 1971, it urged the United Nations Committee on Peaceful use of the Seabed to agree upon a twelve mile limit except when it changed the character of international straits.Briggs, p.442


Aftermath


Canada's reaction

In a storm of critics and letters at the government's insufficient icebreaker fleet and lenient attitude together with the increasing concern that the voyage would undermine Canada's sovereignty and set a precedent, the Mulroney government decided to take action. On 10 September 1985, invoking historic title as the basis for its claims, an order in council was passed that established straight baselines around the outer perimeter of the country, thereby affirming the Northwest Passage to be Canadian waters while vowing to enforce the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act.Briggs, p.443 Promises of increased naval and air patrolling were made; notably a program termed the Polar 8 Project was also announced which proposed the construction of new class of high endurance icebreakers. That program was eventually canceled in 1990 due to budget cuts.


U.S. position

This order contradicted the U.S. ocean's policy and was disapproved of on the basis of its unilateralism and its restrictions on the rights and freedom of the international community in navigation and flight of the high seas. Moreover, the U.S. had not ratified the
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), also called the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea Treaty, is an international agreement that establishes a legal framework for all marine and maritime activities. , 167 c ...
of 1982 which Canada used in claiming new baselines for its coasts. However, the rising concern of new generation Soviet nuclear submarine capability along with Canada's intention to build its own fleet of such vessels and potentially interfering with American presence in the area prompted for a quick resolution of this issue. It was the Pentagon's view that an increased assertion of Canada's sovereignty in the north would compromise its ability to deploy forces for the defense of Europe.Briggs, p.446Briggs, p.447


Agreement

On 11 January 1988, the
U.S. secretary of state The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...
George Shultz and the Canadian Foreign secretary
Joe Clark Charles Joseph Clark (born June 5, 1939) is a Canadian statesman, businessman, writer, and politician who served as the 16th prime minister of Canada from 1979 to 1980. Despite his relative inexperience, Clark rose quickly in federal polit ...
signed the Agreement on Arctic Cooperation. The two key clauses of this agreement were as follows: :"The Government of the United States pledges that all navigation by U.S. icebreakers within waters claimed by Canada to be internal will be undertaken with the consent of the Government of Canada." :"Nothing in this agreement of cooperative endeavor between Arctic neighbors and friends nor any practice thereunder affects the respective position of the Governments of the United States and Canada on the Law of the Sea in this or other maritime areas or their respective positions regarding third parties." This agreement being
de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
rather than
de jure In law and government, ''de jure'' ( ; , "by law") describes practices that are legally recognized, regardless of whether the practice exists in reality. In contrast, ("in fact") describes situations that exist in reality, even if not legally ...
, it held no ground on international law. Nevertheless, it was the opinion of Canadian officials that any U.S. request for passage would only bolster Canada's argument for sovereignty should the issue come before an international court. The U.S. were diligent in honoring their word, requesting passage under this agreement for in October 1988 when she was barred by an early surge of ice, preventing her return to her home port of
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
through the Bering Strait. Regarding the U.S. cooperation in solving this diplomatic predicament, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney pointed out that "One of the great ironies of the position taken by the United States, if followed to its logical conclusion, is that it could lead to much further freedom of navigation in the Arctic for the Soviets."Briggs, p.448-449


Today

As of 2020, Canada's sovereignty over the region's waters is still a contentious issue. Many other potential infringements of Canada's territorial claims (especially by military vessels, which sometimes operate under secrecy) were committed after the controversy.Most of the activities involving American submarines (including their current and past positions and courses) are classified, so therefore under that policy the U.S. Navy has declined to reveal which route(s) the ''Charlotte'' took to reach and return from the Pole.Killaby, p.31 Despite this, the U.S. Coast Guard has remained respectful of the agreement resulting from the controversy, which has helped to foster cooperation with the
Canadian coast guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; french: links=no, Garde côtière canadienne, GCC) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues ...
in protecting the interests of the two countries in the Arctic and solving this dispute once and for all. This cooperation notably includes an ongoing joint program with the goal of gathering geological data that could help in delineating the continental shelf. This data would in turn help towards the preparation of a submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf for 2013 with the intention of fixing precise limits on where Canada may exercise sovereignty in the region. Technological advances and a changing security environment made the sovereignty issue fall out of the spotlight in both countries, but recently, there has been renewed interest due to
climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...
making passage more accessible to commercial ships and oil drilling easier. As a result, Canada is seeing an upraise in political will towards international recognition of its rights over the region.


See also

* Canada - United States relations *
Northwest Passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...
*
Territorial claims in the Arctic The Arctic consists of land, internal waters, territorial seas, exclusive economic zones (EEZs) and international waters above the Arctic Circle (66 degrees 33 minutes North latitude). All land, internal waters, territorial seas and EEZs in the ...
*
Arctic exploration Arctic exploration is the physical exploration of the Arctic region of the Earth. It refers to the historical period during which mankind has explored the region north of the Arctic Circle. Historical records suggest that humankind have explored ...
* Arctic cooperation and politics


Notes


References


Sources

* * {{Cite journal , last = Killaby , first = Lieutenant-Commander Guy , title = "Great Game in a Cold Climate": Canada's Arctic Sovereignty in Question , journal = Canadian Military Journal , volume = 6 , issue = 4 , date = Winter 2005–2006 , url = http://www.journal.forces.gc.ca/vo6/no4/doc/north-nord-01-eng.pdf , access-date = September 23, 2010


External links


1985 CBC News clip on the ''Polar Sea'' controversy

The Canadian encyclopedia entry on Arctic sovereignty

Maritime jurisdiction and boundaries in the Arctic region
History of the Arctic Government of the Arctic Maritime history of Canada
Northwest passage The Northwest Passage (NWP) is the sea route between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways through the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. The eastern route along the Arc ...
Political history of Canada Canada–United States border disputes Polar Sea Controversy, 1985 Polar Sea Controversy, 1985 20th century in the Arctic 1985 in Canadian politics