Arctic Geopolitics of Fishing

Fisheries are typically considered to be a ‘low’ security interest of coastal states, connected with other soft security issues like food and environmental protection. However, in the Arctic region, high geopolitical stakes are woven into fisheries in surprising ways. In the Bering Sea, the US and Russian coast guards work together on joint fisheries enforcement—one of the only direct lines of communication between the two governments. Similarly, in the Barents Sea, Norway balances cooperation with Russia on fisheries with calls for NATO to take a stronger role in the Arctic. On the commercial side, the influence of China on the Greenlandic fishing industry, and the ongoing debate over fishing around Svalbard, can be linked to broader dynamics in Arctic power politics. Fishing has been recognized as an arena of ‘gray zone’ warfare, and emerging gray zone uses of both coast guards and fishing fleets may challenge Arctic coastal states in novel ways. In particular, as climate change drives changes in fish distributions and assortments in the Arctic, the issue of fishing may increasingly rise to the level of high geopolitics. This paper analyzes the geopolitical stakes of fisheries in and around the Arctic Ocean. Key actors in both governmental and commercial sectors will be identified, and the important historical and emerging relationships will be traced: between Arctic states; among small and great powers; and between alliances and institutions like NATO and the EU, in which fisheries issues often serve as an irritant.