Secretary of State John Kerry last week announced that the State Department will soon have a special representative for the Arctic Region, a high-level official of stature who will play a critical role in advancing American interests in the Arctic Region. The great challenges of the Arctic matter enormously to the United States, Kerry said in a statement.
"The Arctic region is the last global frontier and a region with enormous and growing geostrategic, economic, climate, environment, and national security implications for the United States and the world," Kerry said. "President Obama and I are committed to elevating our attention and effort to keep up with the opportunities and consequences presented by the Arctic’s rapid transformation—a very rare convergence of almost every national priority in the most rapidly-changing region on the face of the earth."
Sen. Mark Begich (D-Alaska) has been advocating for an Arctic ambassador since he first came to the Senate and has repeatedly pressed the administration to do its part in addressing the changing Arctic, he said in a statement. The first package of bills Begich introduced in 2008 when he arrived in the Senate was his Arctic Package – which includes legislation to create an Arctic ambassador – in recognition that the Arctic will play a major role in the nation's commerce, foreign policy, and energy independence in the coming years. He has introduced the package every Congress since.
“It’s not always easy explaining to Washington bureaucrats how things are different at home in Alaska, but today’s decision by Secretary of State John Kerry to finally create an Arctic Ambassador is an important step in the right direction,” said Sen. Begich. “The bottom line is that the changes we see in the Arctic warrant a higher level of involvement from the U.S. and this position will allow us to better exercise leadership and vision in Arctic policy moving forward.”
In a statement, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said that while she welcomes the administration paying more attention to an Arctic agenda she questions whether creation of this role is sufficient.
"The White House’s lackluster efforts to seize the opportunities opening up in the Arctic have been a national embarrassment to this point. The other Arctic nations are proceeding full steam ahead and even non-Arctic nations like Italy, India, China and South Korea are all making an Arctic push – while America slips further behind,” said Sen. Murkowski in a statement. “I question whether or not the title ‘special representative’ is on par with an ambassador, a position I’ve consistently recommended. Seven of the eight Arctic nations have an Arctic ambassador, and I’m not sure we are there yet. This position demands a high level official with expertise and Arctic knowledge in order to be on par with the international community.”
