(Lee Berthiaume/Postmedia News, 8 May 2012) -- OTTAWA — The Conservative government's list of troubled multi-billion-dollar military procurement projects continues to grow as a plan to obtain a fleet of armed vessels to patrol Canada's Arctic waters has been hit with a three-year delay.

The Defence Department had been expecting to take delivery of Canada's first of between six and eight Arctic Offshore Patrol Ships in 2015. But documents tabled in the House of Commons on Tuesday show the timeline has been pushed back to 2018. In addition, the $3.1-billion project is now expected to cost $40 million more than anticipated. The Defence Department did not respond to questions by press time.

The Arctic patrol ships have been controversial ever since Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the government's intention to purchase them in July 2007. The Conservatives had promised during the 2006 election campaign to purchase a fleet of armed icebreakers, and the decision to go with the smaller, lighter patrol vessels was criticized because of their inability to operate in the Arctic year-round. In addition, the ships had already been subject to one delay as a contract was originally supposed to be awarded in May 2009, with delivery of the first vessel set for 2013.

(Maritime Reporter, 8 May 2012) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the government to ensure the development of the Navy, first of all, in the Far East and Arctic zones, the Kremlin press service reported. He also ordered providing the Armed Forces with modern weaponry systems, increasing their share to 70 percent by 2020.

Putin, who was sworn in as Russian president recently, also instructed the government to draft proposals on creating federal executive agencies, which will be responsible for the placement and implementation of state defense orders.

The Defense Ministry’s federal service for the defense order and federal agency for defense supplies are currently handling these issues. Putin also said the number of contract servicemen in the Russian Armed Forces should be annually increased by no less than 50,000 people.

(EurActiv.com, 23 March 2012) -- The Arctic is becoming a new geopolitical centre, and the EU and the rest of the world need to update their "mental maps", Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said. Norway supports the EU application for permanent observer status on the Arctic Council, the diplomat said yesterday (22 March) at a conference organised by the European Policy Centre (EPC) think tank. Norway successfully conducted accession negotiations to the then-European Community, but Norwegian voters rejected membership by narrow margins in 1972 and 1994. This time, it is the EU that is applying to join an organisation hosted in Norway.

The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum which addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the region's indigenous people. Its members are Canada, Denmark (including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States. The permanent observers are six EU countries: Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. The Arctic Council Secretariat is based at the Fram Centre, Tromsø, Norway.

"The Arctic Council's challenge 10 years ago was that nobody knew what it was. The challenge today is how to handle all the interest, how to organise that," Støre said. The minister said there were applications from many countries to obtain permanent observer status, but the selection would be made according to the capacity of countries to engage in the fields of activity - including environmental stewardship - of the intergovernmental forum. Støre said Norway had "no other choice but to be in the lead" of knowledge of what the High North is becoming, in the context of climate change where ice disappears, new maritime routes open and new opportunities for accessing resources are taking place. The High North is not the new geopolitical centre, he said, but combines transport, resources, access and geopolitical dimensions.

(Nunatsiaq News via The Ottawa Citizen, 15 April 2012) -- Defence chiefs from eight Arctic nations agreed Friday in Goose Bay, N.L., to co-operate more closely on dealing with disasters and searchand-rescue operations in the Arctic.

"I am very pleased with the discussions amongst the eight chiefs of defence just completed in Goose Bay," said Gen. Walter Natynczyk, Chief of the Defence Staff. "This is the first time the northern chiefs of defence have had the opportunity to meet, as a forum, to discuss issues unique to our respective regions. We were able to gain an understanding of the unique challenges each faces with regards to emergency response and for support to our civilian authorities. "During our short time together, I believe we in the Canadian Forces enhanced our military-to-military relationships with our northern neighbours," Natynczyk said. "The meeting was a good first step to enhancing communications and relationships, and to building on cooperative efforts in the North."

At the two-day meeting were chiefs of defence and other defence representatives from Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States. Topics discussed included sharing knowledge and expertise in managing the challenges posed by the Arctic's geography, climate and distances. Those at the discussions also met with local community leaders and Canadian Rangers. The meeting took place as Nunalivut 2012 ramps up in and around Resolute Bay. More than 150 soldiers, divers and Canadian Rangers are participating in the Canadian military's annual spring sovereignty operation, which started April 10 and ends May 1.

(AFP via Google News, 20 April 2012) -- REYKJAVIK - China and Iceland announced a deal on the oil-rich Arctic region Friday after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao flew in to Reykjavik on the first stage of a four-nation European tour. The deal was part of a package of six agreements signed on the first day of the Chinese premier's visit to the country, during which he held talks with his Icelandic counterpart Johanna Sigurdardottir.

The Arctic's oil reserves were high on the agenda for energy-hungry China during the high-powered delegation's visit to Iceland -- though Sigurdardottir touted the Arctic deal as a research collaboration. "These agreements will provide various opportunities for increased cooperation on research between Icelandic and Chinese scientists in this area," her office said on its website. Iceland's strategic location near the Arctic has not gone unnoticed in China, the world's biggest energy consumer: the shrinking of the polar ice cap is making the region's mineral resources more accessible.

The retreat of the ice has also opened up the potential for a shorter cargo shipping route with Asia, which would cut the sea voyage between Shanghai and northern Europe by some 6,400 kilometres (4,000 miles). China's interest in Iceland came to the fore last year when a Chinese property tycoon tried to buy a large swathe of land in the north of the country for a tourism project.

Some observers suggested property magnate Huang Nubo's purchase would help China win a foothold in the Arctic, amid general concern over Chinese investment in Europe. That deal was eventually blocked by the Icelandic government, after officials there said China had mooted using the island as a trans-Arctic shipping port. Wen's visit is the first to Iceland by a Chinese premier.

(Jennifer McDermott/The Day, 15 April 2012) -- New London - The United States and Canada should work together to have increased influence on how the melting Arctic region is developed, experts say. Several participants at a conference Friday on leadership for the Arctic said the two countries should capitalize on the fact that Canada is next in line to lead the Arctic Council, followed by the United States.

David Balton, deputy assistant secretary for Oceans and Fisheries, and Lloyd Axworthy, who helped create the Arctic Council in 1996 as Canada's minister of foreign affairs, said the two North American members of the group should develop a four-year strategic agenda. The chairmanship of the high-level intergovernmental forum rotates every two years. The other members of the council are Denmark, Russia, Norway, Iceland, Sweden and Finland.

The council's purpose is to promote cooperation among the Arctic nations on issues that transcend their borders, such as sustainable development and environmental protection. In recent years, the council has focused on assessing the effects of Arctic climate change, marine shipping and the options for sustainable development.

"I think we could … spend four years building the council into an effective forum for the decision-making that is going to be needed," Axworthy said. Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Robert J. Papp Jr. sees the partnership going further. Given budget constraints and the need for ships that can operate in the Arctic, Papp said, the United States and Canada could perhaps share a design for icebreakers or even pool resources to build them. Their cutters already work together in the Arctic. "I'm willing to explore that," Papp said. There needs to be a "stronger, more comprehensive national focus on the efforts in the Arctic," Papp said.

The Coast Guard Academy and the Law of the Sea Institute at the University of California's Berkeley School of Law partnered to sponsor the two-day conference that brought more than 160 academics, professionals and law specialists together at the academy to share ideas with the policymakers making decisions about the Arctic.

(AFP via Yahoo! News, 16 April 2102) -- China will seek a larger role in the Arctic region during an upcoming visit by Premier Wen Jiabao to Iceland and Sweden and wants observer status in the Arctic Council, a senior official said Monday.

Wen will visit the two nations during a four-country visit to Europe from April 20-27 that will also take the premier to Germany and Poland, Vice Foreign Minister Song Tao told journalists. "We hope to work together with relevant countries, including Iceland and Sweden, to contribute to peace, stability and sustainable development in the Arctic," Song said. China already has the backing of Sweden to join the Arctic Council as an observer nation, he said.

While in Iceland, Wen will explore ways to expand bilateral ties, including cooperation on geothermal energy and research into the northern lights, Song said. During his visit to Sweden, Wen is also expected to oversee the signing of an agreement to establish a Swedish industrial park on sustainable development, he said. The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental forum promoting cooperation among eight Arctic States, particularly on sustainable development and environmental protection. China is reportedly eager to expand its role in the arctic as the ice sheet melts there due to global warming, making it increasingly possible for ocean-going ships to navigate the resource rich region.

(Voice of Russia, 16 April 2012) -- The daily Izvestiya reports that Russia's border service plans to establish 20 new Arctic border posts.

The head of the Federal Security Service's (FSB) border service, Vladimir Pronichev, said the new posts are part of larger plans for the North Sea Route that include nine rescue centers for the Emergency Situations Minister and Ministry of Transportation. Pronichev said the government's program calls for 15-20 border guards to be stationed at each of the locations. Pronichev admitted "at first glance" there seems to be no need for border posts in the remote northern regions of Russia. But he said that in recent years there have been incidents when "foreign tourists" ventured into Russia's northern waters without permission and unprepared for the conditions there and needed rescue. He also said "scientific expeditions" carry out exploration there without official permission. Melting ice and technological improvements have opened new possibilities for developing hydrocarbon deposits in the Arctic, where some believe 25 percent of the world's oil and gas is located.

The Izvestiya article also quotes ice president of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems Konstantin Sivkov as saying the approximately 40 "radiolocation" posts set up during Soviet times were all destroyed in the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Sivkov reminded that the 20 new border posts will have to monitor a 6,000-kilometer coastline, meaning "each border post will have to control some 300 kilometers" of coastline. Izvestiya reported the new border guards would have training not only in search and rescue, and presumably defending Russia's national borders, but also repair and maintenance of electrical stations, water systems, communications, computer systems for the new posts, and be able "to support" the landing and takeoff of planes.