Agreement on Enhancing International Arctic Scientific Cooperation

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Article 1
Terms and definitions

For the purposes of this Agreement:

“Facilitate” means pursuing all necessary procedures, including giving timely consideration and making decisions as expeditiously as possible;

“Participant” means the Parties’ scientific and technological departments and agencies, research centers, universities and colleges, and contractors, grantees and other partners acting with or on behalf of any Party or Parties, involved in Scientific Activities under this Agreement;

“Scientific Activities” means efforts to advance understanding of the Arctic through scientific research, monitoring and assessment. These activities may include, but are not limited to, planning and implementing scientific research projects and programs, expeditions, observations, monitoring initiatives, surveys, modelling, and assessments; training personnel; planning, organizing and executing scientific seminars, symposia, conferences, workshops, and meetings; collecting, processing, analyzing, and sharing scientific data, ideas, results, methods, experiences, and traditional and local knowledge; developing sampling methodologies and protocols; preparing publications; and developing, implementing, and using research support logistics and research infrastructure;

“Identified Geographic Areas” means those areas described in Annex 1. 

Article 2
Purpose

The purpose of this Agreement is to enhance cooperation in Scientific Activities in order to increase effectiveness and efficiency in the development of scientific knowledge about the Arctic.

Article 3
Intellectual property and other matters

Where appropriate, cooperative activities under this Agreement shall take place pursuant to specific implementing agreements or arrangements concluded between the Parties or Participants pertaining to their activities, particularly the financing of such activities, the use of scientific and research results, facilities, and equipment, and dispute settlement. Through such specific agreements or arrangements, the Parties shall, where appropriate, ensure, either directly or through the Participants, adequate and effective protection and fair allocation of intellectual property rights, in accordance with the applicable laws, regulations, procedures, and policies as well as the international legal obligations of the Parties concerned, and address other matters that may result from activities under this Agreement.

Article 4
Entry and exit of persons, equipment, and material

Each Party shall use its best efforts to facilitate entry to, and exit from, its territory of persons, research platforms, material, samples, data, and equipment of the Participants as needed to advance the objectives of this Agreement.

Article 5
Access to research infrastructure and facilities

The Parties shall use their best efforts to facilitate access by the Participants to national civilian research infrastructure and facilities and logistical services such as transportation and storage of equipment and material for the purpose of conducting Scientific Activities in Identified Geographic Areas under this Agreement.

Article 6
Access to research areas

1. The Parties shall facilitate access by the Participants to terrestrial, coastal, atmospheric, and marine areas in the Identified Geographic Areas, consistent with international law, for the purpose of conducting Scientific Activities.

2. The Parties shall facilitate the processing of applications to conduct marine scientific research under this Agreement consistent with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

3. The Parties also shall facilitate joint Scientific Activities that require airborne scientific data collection in the Identified Geographic Areas, and that are subject to specific implementing agreements or arrangements concluded between the Parties or Participants pertaining to those activities.

Article 7
Access to data

1. The Parties shall facilitate access to scientific information in connection with Scientific Activities under this Agreement.

2. The Parties shall support full and open access to scientific metadata and shall encourage open access to scientific data and data products and published results with minimum time delay, preferably online and free of charge or at no more than the cost of reproduction and delivery.

3. The Parties shall facilitate the distribution and sharing of scientific data and metadata by, as appropriate and to the extent practicable, adhering to commonly accepted standards, formats, protocols, and reporting.

Article 8
Education, career development and training opportunities

The Parties shall promote opportunities to include students at all levels of education, and early career scientists, in the Scientific Activities conducted under this Agreement to foster future generations of researchers and to build capacity and expertise to advance knowledge about the Arctic.

Article 9
Traditional and local knowledge

1. The Parties shall encourage Participants to utilize, as appropriate, traditional and local knowledge in the planning and conduct of Scientific Activities under this Agreement.

2. The Parties shall encourage communication, as appropriate, between holders of traditional and local knowledge and Participants conducting Scientific Activities under this Agreement.

3. The Parties shall encourage holders of traditional and local knowledge, as appropriate, to participate in Scientific Activities under this Agreement.

Article 10
Laws, regulations, procedures, and policies

Activities and obligations under this Agreement shall be conducted subject to applicable international law and the applicable laws, regulations, procedures, and policies of the Parties concerned. For those Parties that have subnational governments, the applicable laws, regulations, procedures, and policies include those of their subnational governments.

Article 11
Resources

1. Unless otherwise agreed, each Party shall bear its own costs deriving from its implementation of this Agreement.

2. Implementation of this Agreement shall be subject to the availability of relevant resources.

Article 12
Review of this Agreement

1. The Parties shall meet no later than one year after the entry into force of this Agreement, as convened by the depositary, and from then on as decided by the Parties. The Parties may elect to convene such meetings in conjunction with meetings of the Arctic Council including inviting Arctic Council Permanent Participants and Arctic Council Observers to observe and provide information. Scientific cooperation activities with non-Parties related to Arctic science may be taken into account when reviewing the implementation of this Agreement.

2. At such meetings the Parties shall consider the implementation of this Agreement, including successes achieved and obstacles to implementation, as well as ways to improve the effectiveness and implementation of this Agreement.

Article 13
Authorities and contact points

Each Party shall designate a competent national authority or authorities as the responsible point of contact for this Agreement. The names of and contact information for the designated points of contact are specified in Annex 2 to this Agreement. Each Party shall promptly inform the other Parties in writing through its competent national authority or authorities and through diplomatic channels of any changes to those designations.

Article 14
Annexes

1. Annex 1 referred to in Article 1 constitutes an integral part of this Agreement and is legally binding.

2. Annex 2 referred to in Article 13 does not constitute an integral part of this Agreement and is not legally binding.

3. At meetings of the Parties referred to in Article 12, the Parties may adopt additional legally non-binding Annexes. Annex 2 referred to in Article 13 may be modified as provided in that Article.

Article 15
Settlement of disputes

The Parties shall resolve any disputes concerning the application or interpretation of this Agreement through direct negotiations.

Article 16
Relationship with other international agreements

Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as altering the rights or obligations of any Party under other relevant international agreements or international law.

Article 17
Cooperation with non-Parties

1. The Parties may continue to enhance and facilitate cooperation with non-Parties with regard to Arctic science.

2. Parties may in their discretion undertake with non-Parties cooperation described in this Agreement and apply measures consistent with those described in this Agreement in cooperation with non-Parties.

3. Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the rights and obligations of the Parties under agreements with non-Parties, nor preclude cooperation between the Parties and non-Parties.

Article 18
Amendments to this Agreement

1. This Agreement may be amended by written agreement of all the Parties.

2. An amendment shall enter into force 30 days after the date on which the depositary has received the last written notification through diplomatic channels that the Parties have completed the internal procedures required for its entry into force.

Article 19
Provisional application, entry into force, and withdrawal

1. This Agreement may be applied provisionally by any signatory that provides a written statement to the depositary of its intention to do so. Any such signatory shall apply this Agreement provisionally in its relations with any other signatory having made the same notification from the date of its statement or from such other date as indicated in its statement.

2. This Agreement shall enter into force for a period of five years 30 days after the date of receipt by the depositary of the last written notification through diplomatic channels that the Parties have completed the internal procedures required for its entry into force.

3. This Agreement shall be automatically renewed for further periods of five years unless a Party notifies the other Parties in writing at least six months prior to the expiration of the first period of five years or any succeeding period of five years of its intent to withdraw from this Agreement, in which event this Agreement shall continue between the remaining Parties.

4. Any Party may at any time withdraw from this Agreement by sending written notification thereof to the depositary through diplomatic channels at least six months in advance, specifying the effective date of its withdrawal. Withdrawal from this Agreement shall not affect its application among the remaining Parties.

5. Withdrawal from this Agreement by a Party shall not affect the obligations of that Party with regard to activities undertaken under this Agreement where those obligations have arisen prior to the effective date of withdrawal.

Article 20
Depositary

The Government of the Kingdom of Denmark shall be the depositary for this Agreement.

DONE at Fairbanks, Alaska, United States of America this 11th day of May, 2017. This Agreement is established in a single copy in the English, French, and Russian languages, all texts being equally authentic. The working language of this Agreement shall be English, the language in which this Agreement was negotiated. The Depositary shall transmit certified copies of this Agreement to the Parties.

ANNEX 2 – Authorities and contact points

CANADA

Polar Knowledge Canada
170 Laurier Avenue West, 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5V5
Telephone: +1 613 943 8605
Email: info@polar.gc.ca

Point of contact for Marine Scientific Research requests:
Global Affairs Canada
Security and Defense Relations, 125 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0G2
Telephone: +1 343 203 3208
Email: chris.conway@international.gc.ca; EXTOTT-IGR@international.gc.ca

KINGDOM OF DENMARK

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Department for Northern America and the Arctic
Asiatisk Plads 2, 1448 Copenhagen K
Telephone: + 45 33 92 00 00
Email: ana@um.dk

Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education
Bredgade 40
DK-1260 Copenhagen K
Telephone: +45 3544 6200
Email: sfu@ufm.dk

Department of Foreign Affairs
Postboks 1340, 3900 Nuuk
Telephone: +299 34 50 00
Email: nap@nanoq.gl

Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Church
Postboks 1029, 3900 Nuuk
Telephone: +299 34 50 00
Email: ikiin@nanoq.gl

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Gongin 7, Postbox 377, 110 Tórshavn
Telephone: +298 30 66 00
Email: uvmr@uvmr.fo

Ministry of Education, Research and Culture
Hoyvíksvegur 72, Postbox 3279, 110 Tórshavn
Telephone: +298 30 65 00
Email: mmr@mmr.fo

FINLAND

Ministry of Education and Culture
P.O. Box 29, FI-00023 Government
(Visiting addresses: Meritullinkatu 10, Helsinki;
Meritullinkatu 1, Helsinki)
Telephone: +358 2953 30004 (Switchboard)
Email: kirjaamo@minedu.fi

ICELAND

Ministry of Education, Science and Culture
Sölvhólsgata 4, 150 Reykjavík
Tel: +354 545 9500
Email: postur@mmr.stjr.is

The Icelandic Center for Research
Borgartún 30, 105 Reykjavík
Tel: +354 515 5800
Email: rannis@rannis.is

NORWAY

Ministry of Education and Research
P.O. Box 8119 Dep, N-0032 Oslo
Visitor address: Kirkegata 18, Oslo
Telephone: +47 22 24 90 90
Email: postmottak@kd.dep.no

The Research Council of Norway
P.O. Box 564 N-1327 Lysaker
Visitor address: Drammensveien 288, Oslo
Telephone: +47 22 03 70 00
Email: post@forskningsradet.no

RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Ministry of Education and Science
Department of Science and Technology
Tverskaya st., 11, Moscow 125993
Telephone: +7 495 629 03 64
Email: D-14@mon.gov.ru

SWEDEN

Ministry of Education and Research
103 33 Stockholm
Telephone: +46 8 405 1000
Email: u.registrator@regeringskansliet.se

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

U.S. Arctic Research Commission
Executive Director, U.S. Arctic Research Commission
4350 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 510, Arlington, VA 22203
Telephone: + 1 703 525 0113
Email: info@arctic.gov