The Arctic has become an area of global significance due to climate change, natural resources and maritime routes. The 2nd Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, which took place from October 31 to November 2, highlighted this fact. Attracting over 1,400 participants from 40 countries, the Assembly engaged in an open dialogue on Arctic affairs and the region’s future, with topics including sea ice melt and extreme weather; the role and rights of indigenous peoples; security in the Arctic; Arctic resources; business cooperation in the Arctic; and the role of Asian and European countries in the region. Asian participants were quite visible at the Assembly, with speakers from China, Japan, Republic of Korea and Singapore taking part in its plenary sessions.

Chinese contributions to the Assembly included (1) a report on China-Nordic Arctic Cooperation delivered by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; (2) participation in a breakout session on China-Nordic Arctic Cooperation organized by the China-Nordic Arctic Research Center (CNARC) and the Icelandic Center for Research with opening remarks from the State Oceanic Administration; and (3) a presentation from China Ocean Shipping (Group) Company (COSCO) on its vision for the use of Arctic shipping routes. All presentations underlined the importance of cooperation in the area, where economic development needs to coincide with the Arctic’s fragile environment. This is especially important with increasing global interest in Arctic investment and trade opportunities in diverse sectors, such as transportation, resource development (including energy, both fossil fuels and renewables, mining, tourism, seafood and fresh water), R&D and infrastructure to name a few.

The Arctic is a region where international cooperation is of upmost importance for both Arctic and non-Arctic stakeholders. Last year the region’s highest-level intergovernmental forum, the Arctic Council, admitted six new observers. Five of them (China, India, Japan, Republic of Korea and Singapore) are Asian states, underlining their common ground for scientific, political and economic cooperation between Arctic and Asian stakeholders. This increased Asian interest in the Arctic is perfectly understandable as the region both is greatly impacted by – and has influence on – climate change, including rising sea-levels and changing weather patterns worldwide. The Arctic is also regarded by some as the “world’s last emerging market”, holding as much as 20 percent of the Earth’s remaining natural resources in an area that covers 15 percent of the planet’s landmass. Despite its vast size, the Arctic has only 4.2 million inhabitants and an annual economy of roughly 230 billion USD, according to the World Economic Forum.

China’s prime drivers for the Arctic are scientific work and economic interests. The Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC) was established in 1989 and has played a key role in organizing the six Chinese National Arctic Research Expeditions that have been conducted to date. Furthermore, China’s Arctic Yellow River Station in Svalbard has been operational for scientific research since 2004. Leading Chinese enterprises, such as COSCO and CNOOC, have, in the last few years, started exploring Arctic opportunities for win-win partnerships with local stakeholders. In China, as is the case with many other countries, Arctic business engagement is a latecomer compared to the rigorous scientific work, which has been conducted in the region. Yet, the two are far from being mutually exclusive. Scientific knowledge is not only bound to be beneficial for a prudent development of the Arctic; it can also in many cases be the prerequisite for successful economic activities in the region.

The Arctic offers many opportunities for investors and companies, seeking new areas of growth, with a potential marriage of resource utilization in the North and rising buying power in the East playing a key role. International cooperation will be the determining factor for the responsible development of the Arctic region. And Chinese stakeholders have increasingly demonstrated themselves as reliable partners for pragmatic cooperation with the Arctic’s local inhabitants.

Egill Thor Nielsson is a Visiting Scholar at the Polar Research Institute of China and Executive Secretary of the China-Nordic Arctic Research Center