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Cold War. Hence, it provided
Canadian observers that were to stay aboard the ship for its entire resupply operation. As plans for the icebreaker's voyage became public, controversy arose in parliament with sides claiming the icebreaker's voyage would violate sovereignty while others stated it did not and called the argument "deliberately anti-American".
385:, it held no ground on international law. Nevertheless, it was the opinion of Canadian officials that any U.S. request for passage would only bolster Canada's argument for sovereignty should the issue come before an international court. The U.S. were diligent in honoring their word, requesting passage under this agreement for
400:. Regarding the U.S. cooperation in solving this diplomatic predicament, Prime Minister Brian Mulroney pointed out that "One of the great ironies of the position taken by the United States, if followed to its logical conclusion, is that it could lead to much further freedom of navigation in the Arctic for the Soviets."
274:
populations of the region who were concerned about the risks that an unregulated commercial passage would threaten their livelihood and compromise their ethnic integrity. Then, nationalists groups further increased pressure on the government through editorials in the press and public protests. One
242:
open to shipping. Conversely, the
Canadian government opinion was that the passage was within Canada's border. Still, Canada was notified of the impending voyage and decided to cooperate with the Americans so as not to prejudice each state's legal position amidst a climate already made tense by the
413:
in protecting the interests of the two countries in the Arctic and solving this dispute once and for all. This cooperation notably includes an ongoing joint program with the goal of gathering geological data that could help in delineating the continental shelf. This data would in turn help towards
408:
As of 2020, Canada's sovereignty over the region's waters is still a contentious issue. Many other potential infringements of Canada's territorial claims (especially by military vessels, which sometimes operate under secrecy) were committed after the controversy. Despite this, the U.S. Coast Guard
295:
simply replied that it "can only repeat that the U.S. government believes the same navigational principles to apply to both passages. They are international straits. To say more than that would be speculative." In alignment with its foreign policy and as mandated by its geographical situation, the
372:
Nothing in this agreement of cooperative endeavor between Arctic neighbors and friends nor any practice thereunder affects the respective position of the
Governments of the United States and Canada on the Law of the Sea in this or other maritime areas or their respective positions regarding third
313:
In a storm of critics and letters at the government's insufficient icebreaker fleet and lenient attitude together with the increasing concern that the voyage would undermine Canada's sovereignty and set a precedent, the
Mulroney government decided to take action. On 10 September 1985, invoking
58:
Publication of the plans enraged the
Canadian public opinion as it was regarded as a breach and disregard of sovereignty and prompted the government to take preventive measures in defending Canada's arctic territories. The U.S. never recognized Canada's claim over the Northwest passage but
194:
was of much significance and prompted many questions over the passage's status. Despite the cooperation of the two countries and the presence of observers on the tanker, public opinion reacted over this alleged breach of sovereignty, pushing the
Canadian government to enact the
296:
United States had consistently defended its right under international law to transit international straits and routes. Even when it formally ended its advocacy of the three-mile limit in 1971, it urged the United
Nations Committee on Peaceful use of the Seabed to agree upon a
284:. Their message requested that the crew return the icebreaker to international waters. Finally, the Soviet diplomacy spoke in support of the public outcry by stating that it believed in Canada's right to sovereignty on its Northwest passage just like the USSR believed the
339:
However, the rising concern of new generation Soviet nuclear submarine capability along with Canada's intention to build its own fleet of such vessels and potentially interfering with
American presence in the area prompted for a quick resolution of this issue. It was the
331:
This order contradicted the U.S. ocean's policy and was disapproved of on the basis of its unilateralism and its restrictions on the rights and freedom of the international community in navigation and flight of the high seas. Moreover, the U.S. had not ratified the
318:
around the outer perimeter of the country, thereby affirming the
Northwest Passage to be Canadian waters while vowing to enforce the Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act. Promises of increased naval and air patrolling were made; notably a program termed the
89:, the Northwest Passage had always been of special interest since it was speculated that it could offer a shortcut to Asia. Many attempts at crossing were made but very few succeeded due to the very unforgiving conditions that prevail in the Canadian
237:
that utilizing the
Northwest Passage instead of the Panama Canal would yield considerable savings in time. Permission for the voyage was not officially sought by the United States government because of its position that the Northwest Passage is an
279:
voyage to place Canadian flags across the path of the icebreaker. This actual plan was not carried out but Canadian students and Inuit activists managed to drop leaflets in a cylinder wrapped with a Canadian Flag onto the deck of the ship near
189:
made the full voyage with the help of Canadian and American icebreakers. While the voyage was carried out with much difficulty, the mere fact that it was possible for a commercial ship to make it from Alaska to the
414:
the preparation of a submission to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf for 2013 with the intention of fixing precise limits on where Canada may exercise sovereignty in the region.
421:
making passage more accessible to commercial ships and oil drilling easier. As a result, Canada is seeing an upraise in political will towards international recognition of its rights over the region.
367:
The Government of the United States pledges that all navigation by U.S. icebreakers within waters claimed by Canada to be internal will be undertaken with the consent of the Government of Canada.
417:
Technological advances and a changing security environment made the sovereignty issue fall out of the spotlight in both countries, but recently, there has been renewed interest due to
59:
nevertheless, the two countries reached an agreement two years later which stipulated that in the future, the U.S. would ask permission before navigating the disputed waters.
147:
so the U.S. and Canada developed a tight cooperation as the imperative to use this mostly empty territory as a buffer increased. Thus, many early warning systems such as the
323:
was also announced which proposed the construction of new class of high endurance icebreakers. That program was eventually canceled in 1990 due to budget cuts.
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sparked controversy by navigating the Northwest passage from Greenland to Alaska without formal authorization from the Canadian government. At the time,
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344:'s view that an increased assertion of Canada's sovereignty in the north would compromise its ability to deploy forces for the defense of Europe.
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736:"Order Exempting the United States Coast Guard Icebreaker "HEALY" from the Application of the Arctic Shipping Pollution Prevention Regulations"
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actually found a passage between 1845 and 1847 but this achievement was not known until years later as he and his crew had perished on the
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has the potential to render those waters more accessible to commercial ships and the thawing of the sea ice of making oil drilling easier.
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Canada's sovereignty over the region's waters was still a contentious issue as of 2010 and is likely to become of increasing importance as
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The U.S did not at the time recognize Canada's rights to the Northwest Passage. Interviewed following the USSR's statement, the
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has remained respectful of the agreement resulting from the controversy, which has helped to foster cooperation with the
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which was removed in 1985 but at the time of the Polar Sea controversy, the act could still be considered unilateral.
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666:"Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Canada on Arctic Cooperation"
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Most of the activities involving American submarines (including their current and past positions and courses) are
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191:
905:
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Fisher, Matthew (August 8, 1985). "U.S. Remains Silent over Soviet Testing Claims on Northwest Passage".
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in October 1988 when she was barred by an early surge of ice, preventing her return to her home port of
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234:
179:, the urge to make the Northwest Passage navigable rose substantially. In 1969, the ice-strengthened
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762:"Third Canada-U.S. Joint Continental Shelf Survey to Showcase Scientific Cooperation in the Arctic"
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signed the Agreement on Arctic Cooperation. The two key clauses of this agreement were as follows:
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It was not until the Second World War that the passage was again explored. With the onset of the
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The magnitude of the reaction was underestimated and pressures from the public opinion on the
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historic title as the basis for its claims, an order in council was passed that established
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had already begun at that time and its completion in 1914 lessened the need for this route.
813:
Briggs, Phillip J. (April 1990). "The Polar Sea Voyage and the Northwest Passage Dispute".
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open to shipping and it sought only to notify Canada rather than ask for permission.
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Dave Ozeck, Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet Public Affairs.
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of 1970. The act contained a reservation precluding it from review from the
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844:""Great Game in a Cold Climate": Canada's Arctic Sovereignty in Question"
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Weighted against the strategic and economic interests in maintaining the
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of 1982 which Canada used in claiming new baselines for its coasts.
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143:, the Canadian Arctic became the first line of defense against the
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was a diplomatic event triggered by plans for the navigation of
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except when it changed the character of international straits.
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was on a routine resupply operation and it was deemed by the
702:"USS Charlotte Achieves Milestone During Under-Ice Transit"
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Maritime jurisdiction and boundaries in the Arctic region
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Killaby, Lieutenant-Commander Guy (Winter 2005–2006).
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forced it to take preventive measures. First were the
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The Canadian encyclopedia entry on Arctic sovereignty
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259:in 1985 were worth taking so it was decided that
175:Following the discovery of large oil reserves in
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738:. Canada Gazette. March 23, 2000. Archived from
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115:in 1850 but he completed the journey on a
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784:"Arctic sovereignty a priority: Harper"
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197:Arctic Waters Pollution Prevention Act
159:were deployed in this region with the
111:was the first explorer to survive the
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127:. However, construction of the
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786:. CBC News. August 23, 2010.
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64:climate change in the Arctic
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926:Political history of Canada
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877:1985 CBC News clip on the
827:10.1177/0095327X9001600308
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93:for most of the year. The
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26:1985 Polar Sea controversy
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941:1985 in the United States
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235:United States Coast Guard
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911:Government of the Arctic
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352:On 11 January 1988, the
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354:U.S. secretary of state
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906:History of the Arctic
377:This agreement being
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821:(3). Sage: 437–452.
411:Canadian coast guard
240:international strait
163:still in use today.
161:North Warning System
268:Mulroney government
49:Canadian government
446:Arctic exploration
316:straight baselines
288:belonged to them.
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436:Northwest Passage
309:Canada's reaction
298:twelve mile limit
286:Northeast Passage
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348:Agreement
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186:Manhattan
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342:Pentagon
184:SS
155:and the
149:DEW Line
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394:Seattle
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272:Inuit
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
