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RUEHLZ RUEHNP RUEHPOD RUEHROV RUEHSK RUEHSL RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHNY #0062/01 0311353
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 311352Z JAN 10
FM AMEMBASSY OSLO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0003
INFO EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHBJ/AMEMBASSY BEIJING 0001
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 OSLO 000062 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR EUR/NB, OES, EEB 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL SENV SOCI NO RS CH
SUBJECT: Ambassador's Visit to Tromso and Participation in the Arctic 
Frontiers Conference 
 
¶1. (U) Summary:  In his first visit to Tromso, the Ambassador gave 
a well-received presentation on U.S. Arctic policy, and met with 
the head of the Arctic Council Secretariat, local government 
officials, Tromso University representatives, a satellite services 
company, the leader of a global reindeer herders' association, and 
a group of U.S. Fulbright scholars studying in Tromso.  Speeches by 
Russian and Chinese officials stressed interest in cooperation in 
Arctic affairs, with the Chinese official's implied criticism of 
the United States for not joining the Law of the Sea Convention. 
Press coverage of the Ambassador was largely favorable.  End 
Summary. 
 
 
 
U.S., Russian and Chinese Speakers on Arctic Cooperation 
 
 
 
¶2. (U) The Arctic Frontiers network holds an annual conference in 
Tromso, Norway to bring together policymakers, government 
officials, industry representatives, regional interest groups, top 
scientists, and NGOs from the Arctic nations as well as from other 
interested countries.  The theme of this year's fourth Arctic 
Frontiers conference held January 24 - 29 was "Living in the High 
North."  In addition to Ambassador White, key speakers included 
Erik Lahnstein, Deputy Minister Foreign Affairs, Norway; Tang 
Guoqiang, Chinese Ambassador to Norway; and Maxim Travnikov, Deputy 
Minister, Ministry for Regional Development.  Senator Mark Begich 
(D-Alaska) recorded remarks for the conference, but did not attend. 
 
 
 
 
¶3. (U) United States:  On January 25, the Ambassador delivered a 
well-received speech emphasizing the strong multilateral and 
bilateral relationships in the Arctic region, where cooperation, 
not conflict, is the norm.  The United States has a strong interest 
in Arctic issues and is working with other members of the Arctic 
Council to ensure developments in the Arctic do not harm the 
fragile ecological environment.  In response to a follow-up 
question on U.S. accession to the Law of the Sea Convention, the 
Ambassador related the strong support of the Obama Administration 
and its predecessors in joining the Convention, while noting the 
uncertainties surrounding the process of U.S. Senate ratification. 
 
 
 
¶4. (U) Senator Begich's recorded remarks mentioned his experience 
as Mayor of Anchorage, and his cooperation with Tromso, a sister 
city.  He emphasized the problems posed by climate change in Alaska 
and discussed draft legislation to promote infrastructure 
development in Alaska. 
 
 
 
¶5. (U) Norway:  In the wake of the last-minute cancellation by 
Norwegian Fisheries and Coastal Affairs Minister Lisbeth 
Berg-Hansen, the GON did not have Minister-level participation in 
the Conference.  Erik Lahnstein, Norway's Deputy Minister of 
Foreign Affairs, became the GON's keynote speaker.  Lahnstein's 
remarks highlighted the international legal framework for the 
Arctic, the need for peace and stability in the region, support for 
the Arctic Council, the need for integrated ocean management and 
cooperation on fisheries.  At a separate session on January 26, 
Statoil's Hege Marie Norheim discussed the majority state-owned 
firm's strong investments in technology to protect the environment 
and Norway's fisheries in connection with opening new offshore 
acreage to oil exploration and production. 
 
 
 
¶6. (U) China:  In his presentation to the Conference that same 
morning, Chinese Ambassador Tang Guoqiang stressed China's interest 
in Arctic affairs, including the impact of climate change on 
Chinese sustainable development and China's contributions to Arctic 
research.  Tang noted China's ratification/accession to the UN 
Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol and 
its efforts to control greenhouse gas emissions.  Recalling China's 
participation in the Arctic Council as an ad hoc observer, Tang 
called on the Council to take a decision on acceptance of new 
observers.  He also called for wider involvement (e.g. inclusion of 
China) in the Arctic Council's work on search and rescue and other 
shipping-related matters.  The Chinese Ambassador listed 
international treaties that provided the basic legal framework for 
 
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addressing Arctic affairs, beginning with the Law of the Sea 
Convention (which one observer later characterized for the local 
press as a dig at the United States, which has not ratified the 
Convention). 
 
 
 
¶7. (U) Russia:  Maxim Travnikov, Russian Deputy Minister for 
Regional Development, stressed his nation's interest in the Arctic 
and in cooperation with neighboring countries and non-governmental 
stakeholders.  He noted that the Russian Federation's Arctic 
regions accounted for little more than one percent of the 
population, but more than 12 percent of national income and over 20 
percent of exports.  Environmental protection and attention to the 
development needs of indigenous peoples are key issues for the GOR. 
 
 
 
 
¶8. (U) Many of these presentations can be downloaded at the Arctic 
Frontiers website:  http://www.arctic-frontiers.com 
 . 
 
 
 
¶9. (U) Ambassador White's speech garnered favorable coverage in the 
local press, which interpreted his remarks and his visit to Tromso 
as a sign of continued U.S. interest in cooperation in the region. 
In remarks at the Conference banquet on January 26, retired 
Ambassador and former UN official Hans Connell praised the United 
States, Russia and China for their engagement and cooperation on 
Arctic issues. 
 
 
 
Arctic Council Secretariat 
 
 
 
¶10. (SBU) In a January 26 meeting, Arctic Council (AC) Secretariat 
Leader Nina Buvang Vaaja described the AC's work and plans.  Vaaja 
comes from a position in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs' 
Section for the High North, Resources and Russia.  Vaaja noted that 
the Tromso-based Secretariat is not permanent, and that a decision 
on whether to make it permanent will be taken at the end of the 
Swedish Chairmanship of the AC in 2013.  She noted that Canada, 
which will take the chair in 2013, is thus far cool to the idea of 
a permanent Secretariat in Tromso.  Norway is fully funding the AC 
Secretariat's 3-4 million NOK budget (approximately USD 600,000). 
AC is a "decision-shaping" rather than a "decision-making" body. 
The GON is not interested in turning the AC into a full-fledged 
international organization, but wants to ensure that it is the 
"relevant forum" on the Arctic. 
 
 
 
¶11. (SBU) Vaaja also highlighted the need to find a resolution on 
applications for permanent observer status from China, the European 
Commission and others.  In the past, ad hoc observers had been 
routinely approved as permanent observers, but this practice ceased 
at the 2009 AC Ministerial given the increasing number and 
geographical diversity of observers (ranging as far as Argentina, 
which requested observer status based on its role in Antarctica). 
She told the Ambassador China was keenly interested in joining the 
Russia-U.S. co-chaired search and rescue task force, but that the 
GOR was firmly (though not openly) opposed to China's request. 
 
 
 
¶12. (U) The next Ministerial will be hosted in Greenland by Denmark 
in April 2011.  May 2010 will mark the first Arctic Council meeting 
of deputy ministers in Copenhagen. 
 
 
 
Other Meetings 
 
 
 
¶13. (U) Association of World Reindeer Herders:  On January 25, 
Anders Oskdal, Executive Director of the International Center for 
Reindeer Husbandry briefed the Ambassador on the Center, which 
works with over 20 indigenous peoples in 9 Arctic countries, 
including the Inuit reindeer herding communities in Alaska. These 
 
OSLO 00000062  003 OF 004 
 
 
peoples are now facing profound and rapid changes and challenges of 
globalization, including climate change, loss of pastures/ land use 
change, as well as societal changes. The Center has an ongoing 
project in the Arctic Council addressing the challenges of 
adaptation to climate change and land use change in circumpolar 
reindeer herding societies, including in Alaska.  The Association 
of World Reindeer Herders is an official observer organization of 
the Arctic Council, and they do valuable work within the 
Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG) of the Council. 
 
 
 
¶14. (U) Oskdal also related the history of the emigration of S????mi 
reindeer herders from Kautokeino, Norway in 1894-1898. Nearly 1/5 
of that reindeer herding community emigrated to Alaska with the 
support of the U.S. Government, building up the world's largest 
reindeer husbandry for a time in collaboration with the Inuit. The 
Reindeer Husbandry Center seeks to strengthen and develop ties with 
Alaska.  Oskdal is interested in organizing a workshop in Alaska 
and perhaps applying for USG financial support, but he did not give 
us a detailed description of his project.  He invited the 
Ambassador to visit his center in the Norwegian county of Finnmark. 
In a separate meeting on the margins of the conference, Laila 
Susanne Vars, Vice President of the Sami Parliament, also invited 
the Ambassador to visit the Parliament in Karasjok, in Finnmark. 
 
 
 
Other Meetings 
 
 
 
¶15. (U) Governor and Mayor:  In separate meetings on January 25 and 
26, the Ambassador discussed challenges and opportunities facing 
the county and city with Troms County Governor Svein Ludvigsen and 
Tromso Mayor Arild Hausberg.  Among the issues discussed were 
Tromso's strengths as a center of knowledge and education thanks to 
the University of Tromso. 
 
 
 
¶16. (U) University of Tromso:  The Ambassador met with Rector Jarle 
Aarbakke, Curt Rice, VP for Research, Hospital Director Tor 
Ingebrigtsen and Center for Telemedicine Director Toralf Hasvold on 
January 25 for a presentation on the university and a discussion of 
the challenges involved in increasing student exchanges and study 
in the United States for Norwegians.  Ingebrigtsen provided the 
Ambassador with a tour of the University Hospital, and Hasvold 
demonstrated the University's telemedicine capabilities.  There was 
keen interest in additional collaboration with U.S. researchers and 
educational institutions, including contact with Embassy Science 
Fellows. 
 
 
 
¶17. (U) Kongsberg Satellite Services (KSAT):   On January 26, 
Arnulf Kjeldsen, KSAT Vice President for Technical Systems, and Jan 
Petter Pedersen, Vice President for Products and Services, briefed 
the Ambassador and Emboffs on the company's services.  Its 
best-known satellite station, SvalSat, based on an ice plateau in 
Svalbard, was built as a result of cooperation between NASA and the 
Norwegian Space Center.  KSAT provides services based on data from 
polar orbiting satellites. In addition to Svalbard, the company 
currently operates ground stations in Tromso, Grimstad, and the 
Antarctic.  The head office of KSAT is located in Troms????, and 
employs 52 of the 67 employees at KSAT. The remaining 15 are 
located at the SvalSat ground station.  The Norwegian Space Centre 
  and Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace 
  own KSAT on a 50/50 basis. 
About 30 percent of the company's revenue comes from U.S. clients. 
 
 
 
¶18. (U) Polar Institute:  Meeting on January 26, Polar Institute 
Director Jan-Gunnar Winther highlighted U.S. - Norwegian 
collaboration in research in both polar regions, including work 
with NASA, the National Science Foundation and the University of 
Alaska at Fairbanks.  Scientists from the United States, as well as 
from 14 other nations, work at the Polar Institute.  The Institute 
reports to the Norwegian Ministry of the Environment 
 .  The Institute 
employs 110 persons (divided between the Institute in Troms????, 
Svalbard and Dronning Maud Land in Antarctica), and activities are 
concentrated on environmental management, global climate, 
 
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long-range transported pollution, the effect of pollutants on the 
environment, biodiversity and topographical mapping of the regions 
and environmental collaboration in the Barents Region. The 
Institute equips and organizes expeditions to both poles, owns the 
research vessel "Lance  ". Winther 
provided us with a copy of his Institute's report on melting snow 
and ice, commissioned by former Vice President Gore and Norwegian 
FM Store. 
 
 
 
¶19. (U) American Fulbright Scholars and other U.S. academics:  At 
the close of his visit, the Ambassador met with Fulbright scholars 
studying Arctic and climate issues as well as American citizens who 
are permanent academic staff at the University of Tromso. 
WHITE