The European Arctic after the Cold War - how can we analyze it in terms of security

The strategic environment in the European Arctic has undergone significant changes since the end of the Cold War and the break-up of the Soviet Union. In the Cold War period, the Barents Sea region was among the most heavily militarized regions in the world. Both Soviet and Western approaches to the region were dominated by security concerns. Today, the region is increasingly seen as an arena for trans-border cooperation, and not as a sensitive military theater. The apparent demilitarization and commercialization of interstate relations in the European Arctic is, however, neither total nor irreversible. New security concerns have arisen, and stereotypes from the Cold War still occasionally leave their mark on threat perceptions and east-west relations in the region. The purpose of this report is to discuss the relevance, strengths and weaknesses of four theoretical approaches that may be used to analyze the European Arctic as a post-Cold War security arena, taking into consideration the specific features and history of the region. The approaches discussed in the report are: Strategic studies, securitization theory, regional security complex theory, and human security. The report concludes that all of the four approaches have much to add to our understanding of the topic, but that the securitization theory of the Copenhagen school of security studies may be of particular relevance.