India's G20 Presidency: Opportunity to Resume Engagement in the Arctic

India's G20 Presidency: Opportunity to Resume Engagement in the Arctic

India's G20 Presidency: Opportunity to Resume Engagement in the Arctic

By Captain Anurag Bisen, Serving Indian Navy officer

Key points

  • The Arctic lies at the intersection of several issues with global consequences such as climate change, increased accessibility to and availability of resources, and global strategic contestation that have made the region increasingly relevant to the world.
  • Temperatures in the Arctic continue to rise at four times the global annual average, driving many of the changes under way there, most prominently sea-level rise and the thawing of permafrost, which impact both local ecosystems and the global climate system. International scientific cooperation and data monitoring and sharing are crucial to understanding the impact of climate change, counteracting its negative effects, and enhancing living conditions and economic activity.
  • Apart from a few limited pockets of cooperation that still exist, cooperation between Russia and the West with regard to the Arctic has largely been put on hold since the start of the conflict in Ukraine. The current absence of research and data sharing among scientists is threatening to jeopardise scientists’ understanding of the warming trends in the Arctic, exacerbating the environmental emergency the region in particular is facing.
  • One of the few channels that still exists for constructive dialogue on a range of Arctic-related issues is the GCSP’s “‘High North Talks”’, through which discreet exchanges on various important issues continue.
  • Among other things, the G20 agenda includes climate change, sustainable development and the environment, all of which are under threat due to the cessation of Artic-related scientific engagement. The G20 also represents a rare platform where engagement between Russia and the West has not yet ceased.
  • The suspension of dialogue and scientific exchange vis-à-vis the Arctic is driven by a deep distrust that needs to be overcome by an interlocutor that is acceptable to all stakeholders. India's theme for its G20 presidency resonates strongly with the Arctic and its impact on the world. The resumption of Arctic-related scientific exchange is an easy deliverable with global benefits that India, which has the necessary legitimacy, credibility and relevance, should use its G20 presidency to strive for.

Captain Anurag Bisen is a serving Indian Navy officer with almost 35 years of service. A submariner, he has commanded a Kilo Class missile submarine. He joined the MP-IDSA after an extended tenure in the National Security Council Secretariat, where he worked on maritime issues, including maritime boundary and legal issues, the Indo-Pacific, the Indian Ocean region, maritime and coastal security, and Polar issues. He was instrumental in drafting and winning approval of India’s Arctic Policy, released in March 2022. He is a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College and holds a bachelor’s degree in Law, a master’s in Telecom, and a Russian language diploma from Arkhangelsk State University, Russia.