Arctic Yearbook 2015 | Page 308

308 Arctic Yearbook 2015 defense hawk corner as well. Alongside the Arctic’s scientific community, an intelligence community should be constructed with an Arctic Intelligence Forum at its core. Properly constructed, this forum should serve to transparently display security developments across the region, not just through a military lens but also a military-industrial one. Where possible, Arctic states should also engage in joint military exercises. And finally, as use of the Northern Sea Route increases, both tourism and trade are bound to increase in lockstep. To help coordinate efforts across the region, an Arctic Coast Guard, bringing together the resources and manpower of the eight Arctic states, would be the strongest showing of cooperation yet. Arctic regional forum Lowering the barriers to entry and bringing in a diverse set of voices to complement those of stakeholders has been the hallmark of ASEAN as exemplified by the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF). When the forum is held, dozens of states join in consultation to discuss the region’s defining issues. As framed by former Australian Foreign Minister Gareth Evans, ARF succeeds in building “security with others rather than against them” (Acharya 2009: 199). Arctic states and the Arctic Council have endeavored to be more inclusive through rhetoric, but in reality there remains a void. As discussed in the third policy prescription, Arctic cooperation needs to do a better job including non-littoral states. Similarly, the Arctic states, again working through the Arctic Council, should strengthen communication and cooperation with non-regional actors expressing interest in the region. Asian states, as diverse as China, Singapore, and India, have sent ministers to the Circumpolar North to build partnerships, and often these overtures are met with a cold reception. The present Arctic governing culture viewing interest by non-regional actors with suspicion should be replaced by a culture of tempered trust, and an Arctic Regional Forum can help to break down those barriers through constructive engagement. Arctic Economic Community Hardly unique to Southeast Asia, but certainly a defining economic feature of the region, is an integrated economic community. Arctic states need not look that far for an economic exemplar – functionalism thrives in their backyard through the European Union (EU). Building on the EU model, Oran Young has suggested the creation of an “Arctic Development Bank,” especially when considering that “Arctic communities exhibit a number of features that are characteristic of lessdeveloped economies” (Young 1992: 222). While the establishment of such a bank would have to be parallel to, and not within, the Arctic Council governing nucleus, such economic cooperation could help to lift the tide of poverty found in indigenous communities. Not only helping to improve the condition of depressed communities, an Arctic Development Bank would share fiscal risk across Arctic states. Thus, a mutually assured (financial) destruction system would persist whereby if one state becomes intransigent, all parties will suffer economic repercussions. Spillover and biased options of this nature will help to secure the region. Toward an Arctic Way