Hampson: Should Canada strengthen its military presence in the Arctic?
Director of the Global Security program and Distinguished Fellow at CIGI and Chancellor's Professor at Carleton University
Canada’s sovereignty over its Arctic territories is not in question and never has been. We have disputing claims with Russia over the Lomonosov Ridge, an underwater mountain chain that runs from Ellemere Island to Siberia; with Denmark over Hans Island in the Nares Straits; and with the US over maritime boundaries in the Beaufort Sea and the legal status of the Northwest Passage. But these disputes will be only be resolved by science, international law, and through the peaceful dispute settlement procedures of the United Nations. Displays of Gun Power may tell the world that we are concerned about the north. But we need lots of sharp pencils and legal smarts too.
