Debates over the Role of the Arctic Council

This article examines the role(s) that the member governments want the Arctic Council to have in Arctic Ocean affairs. The article identifies and examines three determining debates over the role and future of the Arctic Council: The first preceded the Arctic Council's creation in 1996, the second occurred during and as a result of the Ilulissat meeting in 2008, and the third followed the political shift in the United States in 2009.