The EU Modular Simulation is an educational tool: a real-life simulation of the geopolitics of the Arctic Region in the context of climate change. As the acceleration of climate change produces increasing environmental impacts globally, the Arctic region, given its unique environmental and geopolitically status, is drawing rising attention from international stakeholders.
The pedagogical exercise provides an opportunity for students to experience the highest level of crisis management from the perspective of the main EU Institutions: The European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the European Union (hereafter, the Council).
Participants will experience multiple roles at a European level on a rotational basis. At the beginning of the simulation, participants will be Commissioners operating under a given Directorate-General. Following that, participants will take on the role of an MEP, and they will engage in meaningful debates tackling the Arctic Region. Ultimately, participants will be government ministers from each EU country, according to the policy area to be discussed (in this case, Foreign Ministers).
The Arctic Region is experiencing the effects of rising global temperatures: the dramatic recession of Arctic Sea ice may trigger competition for extraction of the vast reservoirs of oil and natural gas that lie under the vanishing ice, which accounts for up to a quarter of the world’s undiscovered fossil fuel reserves, by some estimates. Some radical predictions for the region envision a new Cold War-like scenario, given the fierce competition and the militarisation of the region in the last couple of years.
Russia is deploying an increasingly large number of military assets to the region, becoming a foremost actor to engage in a strategic build-up of military forces in the area. Its build-up is consistent with at least 16 deepwater ports, 14 operational airfields, a new command, and roughly 50 icebreakers in their Arctic territory, some nuclear-powered ones. In comparison, Alaska has two military bases, two airfields, and two icebreakers. The war on Ukraine will most likely spill over in the Arctic region. Policymakers expect the role of NATO to increase in the Arctic, given the expressed willingness of intensifying the cooperation between NATO and Finland and Sweden, the two Arctic nations that are not members of NATO. Furthermore, the aggression on Ukraine translates into a hindered cooperation and dialogue between Arctic nations and Russia, whose aggressiveness obstructs international dialogue and its reliability, credibility, and commitment as an interlocutor.
Notwithstanding years of enhanced cooperation in the field of research in the Arctic, since the war on Ukraine started, international researchers had to stop communicating with the Russian partners, translating to missing a year of data. The data collection efforts are crucial for determining the impact of climate change on the regional ecosystem and the livelihoods of indigenous populations.
The Arctic Council, a high-level intergovernmental forum addressing the issues faced by the Arctic governments, was established by the Ottawa Declaration in 1996. The members of the Council are the US, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and Russia. Unfortunately, considering the war on Ukraine, the members of the Arctic Council condemned Russia’s actions and refused to follow through with any meetings scheduled to take place in Russia. The prospect of the Arctic Council interrupting dialogue and collaboration efforts is tremendously concerning, given that a thick layer of freezing soil and ancient plant matter called permafrost digs up approximately 1.5 trillion metric tons of organic carbon—twice what Earth’s atmosphere currently holds—into the Arctic. This places the region at what should be the core of environmental and security concerns and policymaking efforts.
The ongoing war in Ukraine leaves many important questions that the European policymakers should consider when designing policies for the Arctic region. The creation of a new security dialogue with Russia in the Arctic may promote peace or harmonise any regional military activity, especially given the intrinsic value of maintaining open communication channels as a critical diplomatic goal. With this in mind, the decision-makers should consider the sensitive environmental and security dimensions of the Arctic from a plethora of angles in order to construct a robust set of strategic actions that the EU could take in the region.
Apart from the Russian Federation’s meddling in the Arctic, the People’s Republic of China has dubbed itself a “near-Arctic state” in anticipation of the upcoming “Polar Silk Road” project — a network of Arctic shipping routes. The United States has a plethora of interests in the Arctic, derived from its territorial sea and encompassing navigation through international straits, along with upholding the freedom of the seas and fishery conservation, pollution control, and resource development.
The European Union has become more attentive to the region since it is “one of the world’s strongest proponents of greater international efforts to fight climate change, through developing alternative energy sources, resource efficiency, and climate change research.”
The EU is also home to 1/3 of the world’s merchant fleet and has extensive coordination amongst member states on the environment, maritime safety maritime security/rule of law and promoting novel and longstanding maritime industries.
The Simulation will uncover the work of the three main European institutions: the European Commission (EC), Council of the European Union (hereafter- the Council), and the European Parliament. Whilst being in the role of a European decision-maker, participants will also have to engage in negotiations with third parties affected by the crisis.
Each of the Commission’s policy departments, referred to as Directorates-General (DGs), is responsible for a specific policy area. EU DGs are responsible for establishing, implementing, and managing EU policy, law, and funding.
The Commission’s Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries is responsible for the policy area of fisheries, the Law of the Sea, and Maritime Affairs.
DG MARE develops and carries out the Commission’s maritime affairs and fisheries policies.
DG MARE works to:
● ensure that the ocean resources are used sustainably and that coastal community and the fishing sector have a prosperous future
● promote maritime policies and stimulate a sustainable blue economy
● promote ocean governance at the international level.
DG MARE has previously been involved in the Arctic by supporting the Commission’s work. The High Representative and the Commission put forward their approach for a more robust EU engagement for a peaceful, sustainable and prosperous Arctic. The Arctic region is of crucial strategic importance for the European Union in view of climate change, raw materials, and geostrategic influence.
The Communication responds to these geopolitical, environmental, economic, security, and social challenges and opportunities. It seeks to foster cooperation with partners on sustainable approaches to overcome them.
The EU will further strengthen its Arctic engagement with crucial targets:
● contribute to peaceful and constructive dialogue and international cooperation to keep the Arctic safe and stable by raising Arctic matters in its external contacts, intensifying regional cooperation, and monitoring and anticipating emerging security challenges.
● Take decisive action to tackle the ecological, social, economic, and political impact of climate change and environmental degradation. Make the Arctic more resilient by environmental legislation, concerted action against black carbon and permafrost thaw, and pushing for oil, coal, and gas to stay in the ground, including in Arctic regions.
● Finally, support a comprehensive, inclusive, and sustainable development of the Arctic regions to the benefit of its current inhabitants and future generations, emphasizing the needs of indigenous peoples, women, and the young, and investing in future-orientated jobs including in the blue economy.
Understanding the role of DG MARE in the Arctic region:
The EU’s Arctic policy is a cross-sectoral undertaking, developed primarily by DG Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE) and the EEAS.
DG MARE has been involved with developing cutting-edge research, policies, and strategic insight regarding the Arctic region:
● Designing a comprehensive strategy for engaging with the Arctic region- EU Arctic Policy;
● Hosting webinars with experts for an effective outreach;
● Annual hosting of the EU Arctic Forum and Indigenous Peoples’ Dialogue- an event that aims to bring together key Arctic players from a plethora of fields: policymaking, academia, business, and science, to assess recent developments in the region and discuss challenges ahead, as part of the efforts to foster EU engagement for a peaceful, sustainable, and prosperous Arctic.
The European Parliament, the sole directly elected European Union institution, is situated at the core of European political debate and decision-making. The Parliament acts as a co-legislator with the Council by adopting and amending legislative proposals and deciding on the EU budget. Additionally, it supervises the work of the Commission and other EU institutions, and it cooperates with the national parliaments of EU countries.
Twenty standing committees and three subcommittees carry out Parliament’s political and legislative work. Parliament’s committees play a crucial role in policymaking as they are responsible for preparing Parliament’s positions, particularly new legislative proposals.
The committees draw up, amend and adopt legislative proposals and own-initiative reports. In addition, they consider Commission and Council proposals and, where necessary, draw up reports to be presented to the plenary assembly.
The Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET) promotes multilateralism and a global rules-based order founded on international law, centred on three pillars:
• strengthening the Common Foreign and Security Policy
• fostering the European Parliament’s diplomatic role
• being a fully-fledged co-legislator on the EU’s external financing instruments
The Committee on Foreign Affairs aims to ensure that democracy, the rule of law, and human rights are guaranteed in agreements between the EU and non-EU countries. Among its responsibilities is monitoring, implementing, and promoting EU foreign policy. On a daily basis, it comments on issues on the EU’s foreign and security policy and prepares non-binding reports and resolutions on foreign policy issues.
Understanding AFET Committee’s role in the Arctic region
• The European Parliament advocated for a united EU policy on the Arctic, as well as a coherent strategy and a concretised action plan on the EU’s engagement on the Arctic, with a focus on socio-economic and environmental issue 1.
• Plenary sessions followed by the adoption of reports and resolutions (e.g.’ The Arctic: Security Opportunities, Concerns and Challenges Report 2). One of the most recent reports points out that “the Arctic plays a crucial role in keeping the planet’s environmental balance” and “the importance of the Arctic for EU energy security.” 3
Together with the European Parliament, the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU.
What does the Council do?
● Negotiates and adopts EU laws, together with the European Parliament, based on proposals from the European Commission;
● Coordinates EU countries’ policies;
● Develops the EU’s foreign & security policy, based on European Council guidelines;
● Concludes agreements between the EU and other countries or international organisations;
● Adopts the annual EU budget - jointly with the European Parliament.
Composition:
There are no fixed members of the EU Council. Instead, the Council meets in 10 different configurations, each corresponding to the discussed policy area. Each country sends its minister responsible for that policy area depending on the configuration.
The Foreign Affairs Council is responsible for the EU’s external action, including foreign policy, defence and security, trade, development cooperation, and humanitarian aid.
How does the Foreign Affairs Council work?
The Foreign Affairs Council comprises foreign ministers from all EU member states.
Depending on the agenda, the Council also brings together: - defence ministers (common security and defence policy) - development ministers (development cooperation) - trade ministers (common commercial policy). The High Representative of the Union chairs the Foreign Affairs Council for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy meetings. The High Representative is assisted by the European External Action Service (EEAS).
However, when the FAC discusses common commercial policy issues, it is presided by the representative of the EU member state holding the six-monthly rotating presidency of the Council of the EU.
It also defines and implements the EU’s foreign and security policy based on guidelines set by the European Council. In particular, the Council can launch EU crisis management actions, both civil and military, to pursue the EU’s objectives of peace and security. It can also adopt measures needed to implement the EU’s foreign and security policy, including possible sanctions.
As it is an exclusive competence of the EU, the Council adopts measures implementing the EU’s common commercial policy together with the European Parliament. This includes trade and investment relations, intellectual property rights, and foreign direct investment.
Understanding FAC’s role in the Arctic region
● The Council adopted its conclusions on the Arctic as adopted by the Council on 20 June 2016 4.
● In 2019, the Council adopted conclusions on the EU Arctic policy 5.
Each module will have 90 minutes. The activities will be adapted to the specifics of each EU Institution.
DG MARE works to develop the European maritime economy’s potential and secure a safe and stable supply of seafood, sustainable fisheries, the preservation of the marine environment, and prosperous coastal communities. Participants will develop a set of policy recommendations as a response to an ongoing crisis.
Starting from the Joint Communication to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions- A stronger EU engagement for a peaceful, sustainable and prosperous Arctic, participants must issue an approximately 3-5 pages Policy Paper in which, from the standpoint of DG MARE, to:
• Identify the strategic priorities of the EU in the Arctic region;
• Explain how the aforementioned priorities fit under the Strategic Compass;
• Suggest how to enhance International Cooperation in the field of fisheries;
• Determine what policies could be adopted to achieve more sustainable and responsible fishing practices;
• Identify what the European Union could undertake preemptive measures against the prospect of commercial shipping routes becoming a destabilizing force in the region?
• Discuss potential EU-funded projects and initiatives that could raise awareness on the Arctic region, and identify what stakeholders should be considered.
Technical details:
In this module, participants will be randomly allocated to a political group present in the AFET Committee and participate in a debate. Subsequently, each political group will come up with a maximum of 2 amendments per political group, which will be voted to be included in the Resolution of the European Parliament.
Political Groups
Due to the limited number of participants, there will be four political groups represented in the AFET Committee:
European People’s Party (EPP)
Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D)
Renew Europe
The Greens/EFA
Students will be randomly allocated to one of the political groups. Through teamwork, they will need to design the strategic objectives of the groups and deliver speeches. After the debate, participants will return to their political groups and decide on 1-2 amendments they want to propose for the final Resolution. Once having decided on the amendment(s) they want to put forward, political groups can negotiate among themselves.
Finally, a voting session will occur, and the final version of the Resolution will be voted on.
Topic
How should the European Union respond to the climate of insecurity in the Arctic region?
The outcome of the debate
A resolution proposed by the European Parliament
Debate Structure
In the European Parliament, the speaking time in the Chamber is allocated according to the following criteria: a first fraction of speaking time is divided equally amongst all the political groups. Then, a different fraction is divided among the groups in proportion to the total number of their members. MEPs who wish to speak are entered on the list of speakers in an order based on the numerical size of their group.
In this simulation, the first fraction of speaking is 2 minutes. Adding to that, according to the size of each political group, the additional time is 6 minutes for EPP, 5 minutes for S&D, 4 minutes for Renew, and 3 minutes for The Greens/EFA. Each political group can decide on one or more MEPs that will take the floor.
Amendment(s)
After the plenary session, each group will have 10-15 minutes to decide on 1-2 amendments they would like to add in the final Resolution. The amendment(s) need to be concise.
Example of amendments from a resolution adopted in the European Parliament 6:
Supports the validity of the three founding pillars of the integrated EU policy for the Arctic, namely responding ambitiously to climate change and safeguarding the Arctic environment, promoting sustainable development, and strengthening international cooperation; stresses the importance of a balanced EU Arctic policy and believes that the EU is uniquely well-placed to help coordinate and complement Member States’ Arctic policies, and therefore stresses the need for more coherence between the EU’s internal and external policies as regards Arctic matters; urges the EU to include an Arctic dimension wherever appropriate in its sectoral policies;
Underlines the important role of Arctic Council observers, which have considerable experience and have long been engaged in scientific and political cooperation in the Arctic; welcomes, in this regard, the ongoing dialogue between the observers and the Arctic Council Presidency; supports the EU’s application to become a full observer in the Arctic Council and encourages the members of the Arctic Council to respond positively to the EU’s request; underlines, however, that the EU is already a de facto observer of the Arctic Council, with the possibility to participate and contribute on the same terms as other observer members;
Stresses that the EU must contribute to enhanced Arctic multilateral governance, promote the sustainable use of resources, and protect and preserve the Arctic in unison with its population; calls for the EU to continue to contribute to the Arctic Council through expertise and financing by increasing its engagement in the Arctic Council working groups and its various projects; believes that the northern region should be viewed as part of the EU’s northern neighbourhood, with increased participation in existing forums; highlights that the Northern Dimension serves as a constructive arena for cross-border cooperation, with a successful model for sectoral cooperation, in which the EU contributes equally to the joint policy with Russia, Norway and Iceland, as well as other observers; welcomes further practical cooperation on a broad range of areas; highlights the cooperation between local and national state and non-state actors within the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, of which the EU is a full member, on issues with particular relevance to the Barents region; notes that the Barents Euro-Arctic Council has played an essential role in building trust and mutual understanding in the North while enhancing cooperation between Arctic countries; notes that the EU should also aim to participate in other political forums linked to Arctic development; Participants have the chance to conduct inter-political groups negotiations before the voting session.
Voting
During the vote on a parliamentary report or a resolution, Members can change the text submitted to them by adopting amendments, which may seek to delete, reformulate, replace, or add to the content of the text under consideration. MEPs first vote on each amendment individually and then the whole text as amended.
Typically, MEPs vote by show of hands, and the President of the sitting determines the majority in each case. If an amendment
Example of speeches in the European Parliament:
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/CRE-9-2021-10-05-ITM-014_EN.html
In the third and last module, participants will put themselves in the shoes of the EU member states’ ministers of foreign affairs and will discuss and negotiate with representatives from other Institutions based on a background brief. Finally, the President of the Council is tasked with drafting the conclusions, considering the priorities of other Member States.
The conclusions, which shall be as concise as possible, shall set out the policy guidelines and decisions reached by the European Council, placing them briefly in their context and indicating the stages of the procedure to follow from them. The final text is adopted by consensus.
Useful materials:
Background brief: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/53947/final-background-note-fac-24-jan-2022.pdf
Council Conclusions:
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/142554.pdf
https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-10400-2016-INIT/en/pdf
A quick look at parliamentary committees . (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.europarl.europa.eu/cmsdata/committees/booklet/Committees-quick-look-EN-web.pdf
A stronger EU engagement for a greener, peaceful and prosperous Arctic. Retrieved from: https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_5214
A Russian incursion into Ukraine will likely affect the Arctic - but exactly how is unclear. Nunatsiaq News. (2022, January 27). Retrieved from https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/a-russian-incursion-into-ukraine-will-likely-affect-the-arctic-but-exactly-how-is-unclear/
Agreement to prevent Unregulated High Seas Fisheries in … (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mofa.go.jp/files/000449233.pdf
Analytics, F. P. (2022, February 25). How Russia’s future with NATO will impact the Arctic. Foreign Policy. Retrieved from https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/02/25/arctic-ukraine-russia-china-eu-invasion-nato/
Anadolu Ajansı. (n.d.). Arctic Council countries condemn Russia’s war on Ukraine. Retrieved from https://www.aa.com.tr/en/world/arctic-council-countries-condemn-russia-s-war-on-ukraine/2523079
Arctic research with Russia curtailed after Ukraine invasion. Science. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.science.org/content/article/it-looks-iron-curtain-2-arctic-research-russia-curtailed-after-ukraine-invasion
Baker, A. (2022, March 9). Ukraine’s conflict has rippled all the way to the Arctic. Time. Retrieved from https://time.com/6156189/russia-ukraine-conflict-risks-arctic-climate/
Canada, 6 other countries leave Arctic Council over Russia’s war in Ukraine - national. Global News. (2022, March 4). Retrieved from https://globalnews.ca/news/8656811/canada-arctic-council-russia-ukraine-war/
Danilov, P. B. (2022, January 11). Ukraine tension between NATO and Russia may affect the Arctic. High North News. Retrieved from https://www.highnorthnews.com/en/ukraine-tension-between-nato-and-russia-may-affect-arctic-researchers-say
Devyatkin, P. (2022, January 17). Russia’s arctic strategy: Military and security (part II). The Arctic Institute. Retrieved from https://www.thearcticinstitute.org/russias-arctic-military-and-security-part-two/
EU Arctic Policy. EEAS. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage/20956/arctic-short-introduction_en_en
European Commission and EEAS unveil new EU arctic policy. European Commission - European Commission. (2021, October 13). Retrieved from https://ec.europa.eu/info/news/european-commission-and-eeas-unveil-new-eu-arctic-policy-2021-oct-13_en
Foreign Affairs Council Configuration (FAC). Consilium. (2021, December 21). Retrieved from https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/council-eu/configurations/fac/
Greenwood, J. (2022, February 22). Lessons from Ukraine for the Arctic: Russian “dialogue” isn’t always what it seems. Brookings. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2022/01/31/lessons-from-ukraine-for-the-arctic-russian-dialogue-isnt-always-what-it-seems/
Isai, V. (2022, March 12). Arctic security concerns resurface in Canada’s territories amid Russian War. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/12/world/canada/arctic-canada-territories-russian-war.html
Kopra, S. (2022, March 1). The Ukraine crisis is a major challenge for China’s Arctic Visions. The Arctic Institute. Retrieved from https://www.thearcticinstitute.org/ukraine-crisis-major-challenge-china-arctic-visions/ Report on the arctic: Opportunities, concerns and security challenges. European Parliament. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-9-2021-0239_EN.html
Robin Marc Allers, Dr. András Rácz and Tobias Sæther. (2021, April 21). Dealing with Russia in the Arctic. DGAP. Retrieved from https://dgap.org/en/research/publications/dealing-with-russia-in-the-arctic?fbclid=IwAR1-0ATWbFftAXvUMz6c2DXR4_VDO014_J9oiZfV8mpETUbzfJRKNJJQJRM
Russia in the Arctic. Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.swp-berlin.org/en/publication/russia-in-the-arctic
Russia-Ukraine War poses threat to China’s Arctic ambitions. ANI News. (2022, March 12). Retrieved from https://www.aninews.in/news/world/asia/russia-ukraine-war-poses-threat-to-chinas-arctic-ambitions20220312193646/
Schreiber, M. (2022, February 24). Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will have spillover effects in the Arctic. Arctic Today. Retrieved from https://www.arctictoday.com/russias-invasion-of-ukraine-will-have-spillover-effects-in-the-arctic/
Sullivan, M. (2022, March 2). Monitoring the Arctic in Russian invasion of Ukraine. Indian Country Today. Retrieved from https://indiancountrytoday.com/news/monitoring-the-arctic-in-russian-invasion-of-ukraine
The war on Ukraine: Consequences for Finland and the Arctic. The Polar Connection. (2022, March 2). Retrieved from https://polarconnection.org/ukraine-finland-arctic/
War in Ukraine could have implications for Arctic co-operation, climate change research | CBC News. (2022, February 25). Retrieved from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/ukraine-war-implications-for-arctic-1.6363856
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