"HIGH NORTH" CONFERENCE DEBATES GREENLAND'S ROLE

UNCLAS COPENHAGEN 000433 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR OES, EUR/NB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECIN ECON EFIS EWWT MARR PGOV PREL SENV DA GL SUBJECT: "HIGH NORTH" CONFERENCE DEBATES GREENLAND'S ROLE IN A CHANGING ARCTIC (U) SENSITIVE BT UNCLASSIFIED; PROTECT ACCORDINGLY. NOT FOR INERNET DISTRIBUTION. ¶1. (SBU) Summary: The Danih Institute for Military Studies sponsored a confrence on Arctic security September 23. Denmark mintains sovereignty over Greenland, but granted it increased autonomy as of June 2009. Participant vigorously debated Greenland's changing role asthe Arctic attracts increasing interest due to it untapped natural resources, increasing use as sa lanes, and the impact a growing Arctic economy could have on the proposed climate change agreement. One Greenlandic panelist suggested that a climate change agreement could be seen as a subtle form of colonialism which could prevent Greenland from realizing its economic and political potential. Another panelist, Danish Fleet Admiral Niels Christian Vang, stated that Danish fleet assets may well deploy further to the north as trade patterns shift, particularly if Greenland's self-rule government is able to use some of its expected new revenues to develop search-and-rescue (SAR) and other maritime capabilities around southern Greenland. A third speaker produced numerous comments with his slightly tongue-in-cheek paper entitled, "The 51st State? Greenland between Danish and American Ambitions in the Arctic." End summary. -------------- -------------- (SBU) Independence desired....if it doesn't cost too much -------------- -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The conference kicked into high gear with an in-your-face presentation by Prof. Pia Vedel Ankersen, University of Greenland, entitled "Greenlandic Politics: Communitarian Counter Revolution," which posited that for reasons of cultural identity and historical experience, the majority of the population of Greenland strongly desires more autonomy from Denmark than the June 2009 Self-Government Agreement provides. The professor supported her contention with a recent survey that purportedly showed 80 percent of Greenlanders desire complete independence from their mother country within 20 years. However, while 38 percent desired sovereignty "as soon as possible," a surprising 58 percent admitted that independence was not desirable if it meant a reduced standard of living. At present, Denmark's 3.12 billion kroner (approx. $620 million) annual block grant accounts for roughly 60 percent of Greenland's budget in an economy totaling 10.6 billion kroner. ¶3. (SBU) Ankersen also contended that several independent research findings have found a widening gulf between generations in Greenland, with younger citizens much more energized on the issue of increased autonomy. Ankersen countered suggestions from the audience that perhaps younger Greenlanders were simply engaging in idealistic exercises, by noting that they show a sound understanding of the significant economic challenges that Greenland must resolve before further autonomy can be considered. The Greenlandic academic created the strongest reaction by suggesting that restrictions on Greenland's economic development as a result of a new climate change agreement could be interpreted as a subtle means to keep Greenland in its pre-developed state, and therefore unable to achieve its eventual goal of independence. As climate change in the Arctic opens up access to Greenland's natural resources (inland mineral deposits, greater hydroelectric power, and less costly offshore oil/gas development),the potential for revenue for the island's self-rule government increases. And this, according to Ankersen, may accelerate Greenland's political maturation timeline. The bottom line presented by Ankersen was that while progress on autonomy must wait for development sufficient to cut the island's dependency on Denmark -- and it may be a long wait due to the very low current state of economic activity -- real autonomy has become a core belief of a new generation of Greenlanders and is unlikely to fade. -------------- -------------- (SBU) While Danish Navy focuses on current issues -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Following this discussion, Denmark's Fleet Admiral Niels Christian Vang discussed territorial security and the protection of Greenland's increasingly valuable maritime resources. Referring to the landmark 1933 decision by the Permanent Court of International Justice that resolved competing claims by Denmark and Norway, Admiral Vang reminded his audience that not only did the decision bequeath sovereignty of the island to Denmark, it also obligated his country to patrol and protect Greenland's territorial waters -- a responsibility that greatly expanded as the concept of the 200 nautical-mile Economic Exclusion Zone was established by the 1982 Third UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. He added that larger and larger areas of high-north waters are becoming navigable due to climate change, with a concomitant increase of demands on Denmark's limited fleet assets. ¶5. (SBU) Admiral Vang stated that Denmark's recently released Five Year Defense Agreement addresses this expanding role, specifically that the Danish fleet intends to acquire additional high-endurance, ice-capable patrol vessels, as well as associated air assets, to increase its maritime capability. Vang pointedly referred to the fact that Greenland's still-rich fish stocks are now attracting the attention of fishing fleets from areas of the world whose traditional fishery grounds have become increasingly depleted, particularly from East Asia. In addition to fishery patrols, the Danish Navy will likely soon be asked to provide greater services, such as search-and-rescue (SAR) and iceberg reporting, to an increasing number of users of high-north waters around Greenland -- from transiting merchantmen to cruise ships, as well as the crews of oil and natural gas platforms expected to be established in the not-too-distant future. Vang and others have previously fretted in the Danish and Greenlandic press that Denmark did not have sufficient assets to accomplish all the missions, particularly SAR in the event of a major civilian maritime disaster. But at this conference, Vang expressed greater assurance that Danish naval units could provide the necessary coverage given Denmark's recent Five Year Defense Agreement. ¶6. (SBU) Although there are many variables in the calculus to determine the correct mix of maritime assets required, Vang contended that international cooperation, particularly among the Arctic nations, is essential to meet expanding needs in the most effective and cost-efficient manner. He specifically noted the importance of the U.S. air base at Thule as the single most important asset in the developing scenario, and said it was essential to keep its capabilities undiminished. He noted that it is farther from Reykjavik to Greenland's north coast than from Norway to Gibraltar. ¶7. (SBU) One final issue the admiral addressed was the maritime community's still-elementary knowledge of the undersea topography of high-north waters, particularly around Greenland, where a maritime mishap would not only heavily tax existing SAR capabilities, but depending on the cargo, could cause extensive environmental damage. He presumed the U.S. and Russia possess this data, and thought it was time it be shared on a broader basis. Finally, he noted that the North Atlantic Coast Guard Forum (established three years ago; its next regular meeting is in October) remains the only coordination forum in which all five high north littoral nations participate. Vang concluded by urging the assembly that the principles of the 2008 Ilulissat Declaration (negotiated settlement of disputes; acknowledgment of common responsibilities; and cooperation on high-north issues) be steadfastly respected, particularly by increasing close cooperative engagement. -------------- (U) Possible Future Paths for Greenland -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Nordic defense expert Professor Clive Archer of Manchester University rounded out the conference with a slightly sardonic thought game on where Greenland's self-rule government may take the island in the coming years. His main thesis was that a Greenland intent on expanding its autonomy could proceed in one of three likely directions: 1) place greater political distance between it and Denmark, but maintain the strategic defense alliance; 2) seek a direct strategic defense relationship with the U.S.; or 3) proceed in a strictly neutral direction and rely on its presumed extensive natural resources to fund its defensive requirements. In brief, the academic argued that despite genuine desire for complete independence on the part of an increasing number of Greenlanders, option 1 would be the likely course of action. Archer contended that option 2 was needlessly provocative -- and he doubted whether the U.S. would even be interested. And option 3 was simply too difficult to achieve: the current exceedingly low state of Greenland's economic base, even if oil and gas are soon found in exploitable quantities, as well as its tiny population (approx. 56,000),essentially makes this path a pipedream. ¶9. (SBU) However, even with this conclusion -- maintaining the present relationship with Denmark -- Archer argued that Denmark must get used to a new division of responsibilities vis-a-vis Greenland. As Greenland's natural resources approach the extraction phase, Denmark must be willing, and should want, to cede some control over the protection of Greenland's waters. To counter claims of quasi-colonialism, no matter how unfounded, Denmark should enter into a more even partnership with Greenland's self-rule government, particularly in matters (e.g. maritime patrol/SAR) that the Greenlanders themselves may one day have the revenue and desire to provide. ¶10. (SBU) Strong reactions and pointed questions from the conference participants, as well as a number of follow-up conversations after the event, indicate that many consider much of this talk about increased Greenland autonomy to be quite a bit above glide slope. Several participants emphasized that Greenland simply has too few people to support a viable, independent state. That said, Greenlandic long-term independence aspirations appear genuine. FULTON