A Legal Perspective of the Environmental Security in the Arctic Ocean

Climate change has affected the Arctic more rapidly and fundamentally than any other region in the world, with considerable impacts on environmental security in the Arctic Ocean. More generally, climate change has been identified as a threat multiplier, which can exacerbate existing threats making interconnections between environment, climate change and conflict vast and complex. Against this backdrop, the main research questions addressed by this chapter are twofold: To what extent does climate change undermine Arctic security? What are the legal solutions for fostering an adaptative and peaceful management of the Arctic Ocean? This chapter contributes to the discussion on understanding current trends and future challenges in the Arctic marine environmental security context and argues that environment-based cooperation has increased the security of the region.