Great Power Competition in the Arctic and the Role of India

In the beginning of the 2000s, the Arctic region gained a lot of international attention. This was initially driven by a growing awareness of climate change and the fact that the Arctic is a region where the effects are apparent at a faster rate than elsewhere. Debates about Arctic sovereignty and the potential dangers associated with the ‘opening’ of the region merged with the increasingly apparent effects of global climate change and peril-ridden popular perceptions about competition for Arctic resources. Arctic ice sheets were disappearing at a brisk pace, which coincided with new prospects for offshore oil and gas exploration, as well as the opening of shipping lanes through sensitive areas.