Transcript
Transcript: Lisa Qiluqqi Koperqualuk on Arctic Security
[00:00:04 Text appears onscreen: "On February 20, 2024, Lisa Qiluqqi Koperqualuk, the President of the Canadian Chapter of the Inuit Circumpolar Council, gave a presentation to executives participating in the course of Geopolitics and National Security as part of the session on the Arctic. As a representative of Canadian Inuit on the international stage, Ms. Koperqualuk discussed the importance of considering security in the Arctic through a human lens, as well as the role of Indigenous leadership."]
[00:00:39 The screen fades to Lisa Koperqualuk.]
Lisa Koperqualuk (President of Inuit Circumpolar Council, Canada): Good afternoon. Hello. I'd like to thank the organizer of this conference for this invitation, and for being able to talk to you and share Inuit thoughts. Thank you again.When Canada and other Arctic states discuss, plan and develop policies regarding Arctic security, Inuit and other indigenous peoples need to be part of these discussions, not outside of the boardrooms, classrooms, offices and war rooms. Now, Inuit Circumpolar Council exists to give voice internationally to every Inuk. Now, Inuk means the singular of Inuit, so don't be surprised when I say Inuk for one person. In Canada alone, Inuit Nunangat makes up almost 42% of Canada's landmass and 72% of its coastline. It's a vast homeland. We are a maritime people. Let me open my remarks, that Inuit understand security in broader terms than defence. Inuit have been speaking for over 45 years, since the inception of ICC in 1977, about the changes in the Arctic and the impacts this change has had on Inuit communities and on the regions as a whole, climate change being one of the greater impacts in our region, in our circumpolar region currently.
We have so many changes happening right now. Our founder of ICC, Eben Hopson, who was from Utqiagvik, Alaska, provoked powerful perspectives about our right to be directly involved in Arctic issues. He illustrated how geopolitics and geostrategic forces beyond our control threatened to destabilize our self-determination and the economic, social and cultural security of our people and the Arctic. Our Inuit Arctic Policy, which was formulated 15 years ago, recognized that there is a profound relationship between human rights, peace and development. These objectives are not truly realizable in isolation with one another. Although, I'm not a scholar of military strategies, I am a scholar, but not a scholar of NATO or NORAD. I am an Inuk born of the Arctic, its land, waters and ice. The Arctic has sustained my people for millennia, and we intend to continue to do so. I'm also an Inuk leader, following on the footsteps of great men and women who have stated for as long as we've been asked that Inuit believe the Arctic to be a zone of peace, and more about this later.
I'll bring your attention to the Arctic and Northern Policy Framework, or ANPF, approved by the Government of Canada in 2017, and it has within it a chapter on defence. We were not part of the development of this chapter as Inuit, but we were part of the development of the international chapter and are working to address many of the recommendations in that chapter. Within this document is also a chapter that we, as Inuit, wrote, and I would advise you to review that as well. Now, seven years old, I understand also that global affairs may be contemplating a new international Arctic policy, and we'll see in the coming months. So, although we are focused here on Arctic military strategic visions, I will approach Arctic security in a holistic manner, as we are ought to do as Inuit. I believe the better our diplomacy works, the less need we have for national security. The Arctic Council provides the forum for dialogue that supports peace, and the fact is it is inclusive of Indigenous peoples in taking part in those conversations. So, since 1996, we've been participating in international dialogues around Arctic Council, and within the working groups, where we participate in projects that are initiated by us and by, or the Arctic Council, and many of them are research projects. But I'd also like to mention something else.
In the past, Inuit have been used by Canada to secure Canadian sovereignty at great cost to extended family, and Inuit communities and many others. In this new era of reconciliation, things are changing, however, and last month, Nunavut and the Government of Canada signed the Agreement for Devolution. And the words of the Premier of Nunavut, P.J. Akeeagok, is relevant to this presentation. I'd like to quote a short quote from him. He said, "Standing on top of the hill by Looty Pijaamini's statue of the mother and child, a monument that stands as a reminder of our history of relocation and resilience as Inuit, I see Grise Fiord, Canada's most northern community, as a testament to Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic. In a rapidly warming Arctic where Arctic security is once again on the line," he continues, "Grise Fiord and all the communities of the Canadian high Arctic have a strategic view on a region that is central to the world." So, we're in a new era of recognizing Indigenous rights and reconciliation, we're in the first steps to achieving equity in our country and in a new era of rapidly changing climate, a significant driver in any conversation about Arctic security.
You've also just heard about the U.S. and its vision of Arctic security. True, we can't discuss the Canadian Arctic security in the absence of this understanding. So, I trust you've read the October 2022 U.S. strategy for the Arctic, as well as the Arctic that figured prominently in President Biden's first National Security Strategy. Opening statement on the Arctic, where he said, "The United States seeks an Arctic that is peaceful, stable, prosperous and cooperative." Seven other Arctic states have a keen interest in the security of the Arctic. Of course, the bear in the Arctic is Russia, the Nanook, as we say for polar bear. We have seen how Sweden, with its application to NATO being stalled now by Hungary, but we call Canada, Denmark, Iceland and Norway, are all founding NATO members. This interest in Sweden accession to NATO, of course, is being driven by the Russian invasion of the Ukraine. As NATO is a hot topic lately, we remember its vision in 1949 was to be a political and military alliance to promote the stability of the Euro-Atlantic area and to safeguard the freedom of its peoples based on the principles of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law, of course, the rule of law being an important concept for all Canadians and other democracies. I'd like to point out the Inuit Arctic Policy that Inuit Circumpolar Council formulated several years ago. And other than the eight Arctic states, the EU, France, Germany, India, Italy even, Japan, South Korea, the UK and China, all these countries, they have Arctic policies. And I mentioned China last, as they see the Arctic as an international commons and a stop on their current Belt and Road Initiative. This is important. Chinese investment, as other foreign investment in Arctic states in minerals and infrastructure, should be watched closely. This careful eye should also extend to scientific research in the Arctic. Again, security can be viewed through many lenses. And of course, at ICC, we constantly push for ethical and equitable engagement of Inuit in anything research-related, in anything policymaking-related and any decision-making-related. So, we need to keep an eye on that.
As Inuit, also, additionally, we affirmed sovereignty of the Arctic in 2009. We have this special document titled, "Circumpolar Inuit Declaration on Sovereignty in the Arctic." Just 15 years ago, we recognized that the Arctic geopolitical landscape was once again changing with growing eyes looking north for resources and trade routes. And our reaction to that was declaring our sovereignty in the Arctic as Inuit. This document asserts that ICC, the Inuit in the circumpolar region, is uniquely prepared to assess, to address and voice the new challenges across our collective homeland of Inuit Nunaat, and to remind the world the Arctic is not empty and that Inuit can help provide the solutions. This interest by many states in my homeland, Inuit Nunaat, is because the Arctic is not as sublime as some would like to think. The Arctic sublime, as I have recently learned, is that romantic vision of the power, glory and tragedy, the Arctic throughout history has been portrayed as. But as Inuit, we rather see it as a region of the creation of our culture, the homeland that we love, and of abundance. It's the foundation of our culture. We wouldn't leave it for the world. My family wouldn't leave it for the world.
Again, Premier Akeeagok reminded us, as it relates to our homeland, our waters are teeming with sea mammals and fish that can support sustainable fisheries. Our land is rich with precious metals, minerals and rare earth that can secure economic opportunities for our future. Our water, wind and summer sun can be harnessed to supply green energy to foster new industries. Our shores encompass Canada's most expansive coastline, connecting our country to the circumpolar world and beyond. I can just hear him speaking and imagining how we are actually exercising our self-determination in our own homeland. I addressed a contingent of United States generals and admirals last year, and I recall looking around the room at all the skill and intelligence, and thinking about our Inuit rangers. Part of Canada defence strategy for the Arctic are the men and women I would want to be on the floe edge with. It is these harvesters and hunters who know the Arctic. They understand how it changes. They understand its power. Yet, in this harsh and unforgiving environment, our Inuit rangers are a vital and important component of our Canadian Arctic defence capacity. Not seeing the tragedy of the Arctic, the sublime, rather respecting the power, and living bounty of the wildlife and our food security.
I'll get into some recommendations. My first recommendation, therefore, is the increased need for equipment and capacity for Arctic rangers. I see them, and many of us see them, as the eyes, the feet of the tundra, and the waters and the ice. I noted earlier also the need for Inuit to be engaged in the Arctic security discussions at all levels, because Inuit are rights holders, not stakeholders, in the Arctic, and should be considered and engaged as such in decisions in and on our homeland, Inuit Nunaat. So, my second recommendation is to understand that Inuit have made many sacrifices in the name of Canadian sovereignty. In the past, too many decisions about us were made without us. We must be at all tables. I would suggest from Chukotka, where there are Inuit, across the Bering Strait to Alaska, and East across the Beaufort Ocean, the Arctic archipelago through the Northwest Passage over Baffin Bay and Davis Strait, Inuit Nunangat, our homeland in Canada, and across the Greenland ice cap to the North Atlantic, Inuit have used and occupied these lands, waters and ice, and hold the rights as expressed in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, or under it, and that Inuit are the first responders. Now, consider for a moment the vast coastline, waters, sea, ice and land that we call Inuit Nunaat, and consider also that we are one people who reside in four different political realities. I believe the better diplomacy works, the less need we have for national security.
So, I mentioned earlier the Arctic Council, which was established in 1996. Firstly, that, there's an interesting fact about the Arctic Council. When it was, just before it was created, it was predicated on Arctic environmental security. And since, it has been a leading intergovernmental forum for promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among Arctic states and Arctic Indigenous peoples. So, this forum is vitally important for security. That ability to talk to each other is the utmost path to peace. My third recommendation is to reaffirm Canada's commitment to and strengthen the Arctic Council. Diplomacy and security means engaging the peoples that live, use and occupy the Arctic, are at all tables where decisions about the Arctic or that impact the Arctic are made. As we often say at Inuit Circumpolar Council, "Nothing about us without us." I mentioned earlier the ANPF, the Arctic Northern Policy Framework that was developed as the policy guidance document for Canada and the Arctic at home, and in the larger global geopolitical landscape. The document states Canada's Arctic, and Northern governments and communities, are at the heart of security in the region. Canada will continue to protect the safety and security of the people in the Arctic and the North now and into the future. It also states, for too long, Canada's Arctic and Northern residents, especially Indigenous people, have not had access to the same services, opportunities and standards of living as those enjoyed by other Canadians. There are longstanding inequalities in transportation, energy, communications, employment, community infrastructure, health and education. All these issues are issues that are absolutely pointed out in the ICC declaration, in the Ilulissat 2022 Declaration. How do these inequalities impact national security, mobilization capabilities of our armed services and operational readiness? I would suggest significantly.
We know that peace follows when communities are well, that healthy communities support national security. Investments in dual purpose infrastructure for communications, fresh water, housing, transportation, all support national security defence capabilities and create wellness in the communities. We also know that after climate change, the greatest risk to the Arctic is through the increase in domestic and foreign vessel traffic. My fourth recommendation is to work to achieve equity between Inuit and other Canadians, and invest in dual purpose infrastructure that supports our communities' well-being and increases military readiness for mobilization in the event of a need. This would take the form of harbours, marine infrastructure, water treatments, communications, telecommunications and broadband, housing. As we know so well, there is an enormous infrastructure deficit in the Arctic. To conclude, Inuit Circumpolar Council has an important role to play in circumpolar relations and national security in the Arctic, from our Inuit rangers to our work at the Arctic Council, in our advocacy at United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, in research and beyond. I believe our Inuit voice, our Inuit knowledge, the power of our language that holds great wisdom, and our rights are and should be central to all governance in the Arctic. Consistent with principles of self-government, Inuit and other Arctic peoples should have direct input in the formulation and implementation of Arctic cooperation agreements between states in matters relevant to them, including, and especially, defence and security matters.
Nakurmik marialuk. Thank you for this time.
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