Arctic Council

About Arctic Council:

• It was established by the Ottawa Declaration in 1996.
• It is an intergovernmental forum for addressing issues related to the Arctic Region.
• It is not a treaty-based international organization but rather an international forum that operates on the basis of consensus, echoing the peaceful and cooperative nature of the Arctic Region.
• Member Countries: Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, the Russian Federation, and the United States
• It has six Permanent Participants (PP) groups representing the indigenous people of the Arctic.
• Observer States: Observer status in the Arctic Council is open to non-arctic states, inter-governmental and inter-parliamentary organizations, global and regional and non-governmental organizations.
  • India is currently one of the 13 observer countries (France, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, U.K., India, China, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Italy and Switzerland) of the Arctic Council.
  • Observer countries do not have decision-making powers or voting rights. While they cannot independently direct Arctic Council policies, they may contribute to scientific research and provide capped financial support to specific Working Group projects.
• Function: The Council focuses its work on matters related to sustainable development, the environment, and scientific cooperation.
• Traditionally, the Council is chaired by the foreign minister of the country holding the chairmanship.