Maritime Strategy and Global Order: Markets, Resources, Security by Daniel Moran & James A. Russell

Author:Daniel Moran & James A. Russell [Moran, Daniel & Russell, James A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781626160729
Google: ZEgxDAAAQBAJ
Goodreads: 27910632
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
Published: 2016-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

The Svalbard Fisheries Protection Zone

The Barents Sea has been a major element in Norwegian–Russian relations, and before that in relations between Norway and the Soviet Union, particularly during the Cold War. Geographically, this maritime area was the primary transit route for the Soviet Northern Fleet to and from the Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean. Moreover, in terms of resources, the Barents contains both living and nonliving resources such as fish, oil, and natural gas. At present, there remains a series of outstanding disputes over the common maritime boundaries of the Barents Sea, and over the legal status of the Svalbard Fisheries Protection Zone, which was established by Norway in 1977. In the case of the former, Norway argues that the maritime zones of the two countries should follow the meridian line from the mainland border. Russia holds that the boundary should be based on the line of longitude extending from the border to the North Pole. The end result of this schism has been to showcase the contested nature of the Barents Sea, most especially in the so-called gray zone, to the immediate north of the Norwegian/Russian border.

In recent times the Svalbard Fisheries Protection Zone has given rise to considerable political friction between Norway and Russia. Regulating fisheries activities in the Arctic is complicated by the physical characteristics of its ecosystems. As Geir HØnneland notes,

the management of fisheries in the Arctic regions is subject to climatic and biological conditions. The ecosystems of Arctic waters are characterised by short and simple food chains with a low number of species, but large populations. . . . Living marine resources are extremely vulnerable to any degradation of their environment and the impact of human activities. At the same time, the polar marine ecosystems are among the most productive in the world since cold water is rich in the nutrients essential to marine life. . . . In general the location of these regions far from population centres renders them accessible than most other areas where fishing is conducted.25

Although most fishery plans around the world seek to combine scientifically informed management and regulation with enforcement measures, this is always more problematic in regions where sovereign authority is disputed.

The protection zone around the Svalbard archipelago is a case in point. At the heart of the dispute lies a fundamental divergence in opinion between Norway and Russia over the 1920 Svalbard Treaty. Norway holds full and absolute authority over the Svalbard Archipelago; as a consequence, Norway contends that it can declare a fisheries protection zone, whereas the Russian authorities dispute this claim. The most dramatic example of the Norwegian-Russian contretemps over the zone involved the Russian trawler Elektron in October 2005.26 This ship was apprehended by the Norwegian Coast Guard, which accused it of fishing illegally. With two coast guard inspectors on board, the vessel tried to escape the Norwegian authorities and head for Russian territorial waters.27 It became a cause célèbre and provoked howls of outrage from Russian media and political commentators. The Russian Foreign

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