RUSSIA, ICE AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Some experts warn South Korean ships using the Arctic route could risk breaching Western sanctions on Russia – currently a key security ally of North Korea – as they would receive Russian navigation and weather services involving payments, albeit small ones.
South Korea’s foreign ministry declined to comment when asked by AFP about the concerns involving Russia.
The oceans ministry said this week that “consultations with key relevant countries and agencies” have been completed to “implement administrative procedures necessary” for the voyage.
Vladimir Tikhonov, Korean Studies professor at the University of Oslo, said “strictly speaking, US and EU sanctions are not international law, unlike UN sanctions”.
“And with continued uncertainty in the Middle East … South Korea may have few alternatives if the Arctic route proves economically viable,” he told AFP.
Lanteigne said China’s Northern Sea Route ambitions were more politically driven than South Korea’s, with Beijing viewing the polar regions as “strategic new frontiers”, raising Western security concerns.
Meanwhile, environmental groups warned growing traffic along the shorter NSR could accelerate Arctic sea ice loss already driven by global warming.
Major carriers including CMA CGM, MSC and Hapag-Lloyd have pledged to avoid Arctic shipping routes.
The NSR is believed to be accessible only during the time of year when the ice is melted enough to allow transits without icebreakers.
“The Northern Sea Route has become increasingly viable as the Arctic warms about four times faster than the global average, leading to a sharp decline in sea ice,” South Korean environmental group Paran Ocean Citizen Science Center said in a statement last year.
“But making the route commercially viable would require further warming, putting the policy at odds with efforts to combat climate change.”
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