Jessica Shadian, CEO of Arctic360, has proposed that the timing could be ripe to consider building a North American Arctic Seaway between Alaska and Greenland amid the mounting interest in the region by Russia, China and US President Donald Trump. In an Opinion article published last week in The Globe and Mail, the chief executive of the Canadian think tank affirms the Far North shipping corridor could be the shared responsibility of Canada, the United States and Greenland (Denmark). It would be modelled on the bi-national St. Lawrence Seaway linking the Atlantic Ocean to the industrial heart of North America since 1959.
“Building our portion of an Arctic seaway,” Ms. Shadian wrote, “would contribute significantly to Canada’s ability to independently defend our Arctic sovereignty, initiate economic prosperity and create indigenous partnerships.”
She observes that just as Russia did before initiating the Northern Sea Route, Canada could do the same in financing the construction of its section’s infrastructure.
Ms. Shadian opined that the St. Lawrence Seaway’s inspiration for a North American Arctic waterway can be traced back to a 2015 U.S. document on Arctic Shipping and Ports. The latter evoked “measures for establishing a viable “ Arctic seaway through a coordinated approach, to ensure the safety, security and reliability of Arctic shipping.”
According to Ms. Shadian, such a maritime gateway could also take advantage of the recently-launched Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE) Pact between Canada, the United States and Finland to hasten icebreaker construction.
Then, alluding to President Trump’s current punitive tariff agenda, she suggests: “Rather than placing tariffs on Canadian goods, an Arctic Seaway would enable Mr. Trump to impose tariffs – in cooperation with Canada – on others seeking to use it.”
Further details available to Globe and Mail subscribers at:
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/article-canada-needs-to-build-an-arctic-seaway/
(Photo of a Groupe Desgagnés vessel serving Iqaluit during summer sealift operations.)