There are few books in the German language dealing with the Arctic scientifically and one would not expect the OSTEUROPA journal, which primarily deals with politics, culture and economy of Eastern Europe as part of a globalised world, to publish a 448 page long comprehensive and diverse book about the Arctic, which can without doubt be considered the best publication dealing with the Arctic in the German speaking literature.
What is it that makes this volume so extraordinary? Several factors make Logbook Arctic a standard volume for those interested in the Arctic and the continuing changes associated with the area. Firstly, it is not written by one author about a specific theme, but contains 26 scholarly articles about the Arctic in international law, about Arctic resources and the Arctic environment, as well as Arctic ethnography. Secondly, while covering a vast array of topics related to such issues, special emphasis is given to the Russian Arctic, which makes the volume highly valuable for the increase of circumpolar understanding. Thirdly, the volume is written by scholars who stress that the likelihood of an armed conflict in the Arctic is very low. This is particularly important in the context of the German Arctic discourse, as the medial perception and other popular science books create the notion of an Arctic conflict, which engenders a high degree of doubt amongst scholars. To this end, the introduction to the book notes that ‘many expectations on which the prophecies of a “hot war in the pack-ice” rest are wrong’. Also the first uncategorised article in the book stresses the importance of focusing on the indicative and not on the conjunctive when dealing with the Arctic. And lastly, the excellent coloured maps, illustrating different topics of Arctic relevance are most useful.
This volume is suitable both for researchers and for those simply interested in the Arctic. Since the book does not focus on one aspect of the Arctic, but covers many different issues, it gives the reader who does not yet have any knowledge about the Arctic, the challenges and the people, a good overview and takes state-of-the-art research into account. It is divided into four categories: nature and law with six articles on Arctic climate change, international law and geology of the Arctic as well as an interview with Karl Hinz, former member of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf; economy and environment with seven articles on natural resources and the role of the EU in the Arctic; conflict and cooperation with six articles on Arctic governance, security and the cold war in the Arctic; and lastly community and society with six articles on indigenous peoples and minorities of the Russian north.
It is impossible to summarise or thoroughly evaluate the articles in this volume as all of them are of very high quality, dealing with topics of relevance and using state-of-the-art research results. Especially important for those dealing with the geopolitical developments in the Arctic, however are those articles dealing with geopolitics and international law surrounding Arctic discourse. These articles are valuable and should be submitted to a broader audience, in particular to journalists who often falsely depict Arctic developments in the mass media.
In particular the interview with Karl Hinz gives deep insight into the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which has moved into focus when dealing with the subsea resources and the alleged ‘scramble’ or ‘race’ for those Arctic resources. Hinz makes clear that the ‘race for the resources’ is not a realistic assessment of the current development in the Arctic, but that the states merely invoke their right for the limits of the continental shelf, as can also be seen elsewhere in the world's oceans. He stresses that the large number of ‘claims’ for subsea territory which the CLCS has recently received is merely based on the 10-year period since ratification of the UNCLOS in which the states have to submit their assessments to the commission. And since this period is coming to an end for most of the Arctic states, except for the US, which is yet to ratify the UNCLOS, the large number of submissions can be explained. Hinz furthermore stresses that it seems likely that the Arctic will be delineated according to the states’ assessments and that in case of disputes the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) will support the solving of such.
Also Duyzing's as well as Humrich's and Wolf's contributions open up new perspectives on Arctic developments. Duyzing exclusively deals with the northern sea route, Arctic shipping and legal implications based on the UNCLOS and Russian domestic law. He concludes that two agreements relevant for the northern sea route are possible: firstly, a comprehensive IMO convention on transarctic shipping, or a treaty dealing with straits in the Arctic. Both possibilities need to be endorsed by Russia, thus it is up to Moscow to decide on the characteristic of such agreement. Humrich and Wolf show that the potential for a military or ‘hot’ conflict in the Arctic is very low. Applying interest-centred, norm-centred, power-centred and identity-centred theories from the social sciences, the authors reveal that either way the Arctic states are very unlikely actively to actively one another over resources and that also in light of higher military activity in the Arctic the will and potential to cooperation supersede the potential for conflict.
The volume however focuses also on the human and environmental dimension in the circum- and Russian Arctic some of which would be highly relevant to be included into the Arctic Human Development Report 2, which is currently under development. The contributions take the developments in the Russian north under closer scrutiny, both indigenous and non-indigenous, while also the resource dimensions or the role of the EU in the Arctic are highlighted. Contrary to the overall debate on climate change, the contributions stress the impacts of the socio-economic and demographic changes after the collapse of the Soviet Union and associated geopolitical changes, the struggle of Russian indigenous people for more self-determination, as well as the impacts of oil and gas development in the Russian north on the local population.
I can only conclude by saying that this volume is the best comprehensive volume on the Arctic in German and one of the best volumes dealing with the Arctic in general. It would be a great asset for the research community if this volume were to be published in English and I recommend those capable in German to read this book.
