Thank you very much. It is a genuine pleasure to be here, President Grímsson and all of you at the Arctic Circle, distinguished guests and friends across the room.
It’s a pleasure to be here representing the new government in the United Kingdom, and it has been fantastic to be part of some fascinating discussions – yesterday following my visit with my ministerial colleague in Tromsø, at the Framsenteret in Norway, and in Oslo, and then here in Reykjavik, and meeting with many colleagues from across the Arctic region.
I am glad of the opportunity to be able to say a few words to you about the UK’s valuable work with all of you as fellow friends of the Arctic.
I reflect on many of my own personal relationships with people and communities across this incredible region. I have friends from Iqaluit to Nuuk, from Tromsø to Tórshavn, and here in Reykjavik too.
I reflect back on a moment I spent as a 19-year-old in Finnish Lapland, in the Millenium New Year’s Eve, in a little cabin in the snow, in minus 25, enjoying the sauna and some skiing.
But like many that night, I thought a lot about the world, the future of the world in this century, my place in it and what the future might hold.
And as I sat there amid the incredible beauty and peace, little could I have imagined how the world would look nearly a quarter of a century on.
With Putin’s war raging on the European continent, and all of the implications that brings for regional and global security.
And with climate change and biodiversity loss advancing at such a frightening pace, wrecking precious ecosystems and destroying livelihoods.
And with me as the British minister responsible for Europe, North America and indeed our relations in the Polar regions, I am very conscious that I have to work with all of you to address those challenges.
And of course that is a daunting responsibility.
But it is also an immense privilege to hold this role and to be here with you all, united in concern and care for the Arctic, and indeed both polar regions, and determined to navigate the challenges ahead in a spirit of co-operation and respect.
So there are three areas I wanted to focus on briefly with you today – firstly, our relationships, secondly, our shared security, and thirdly, our efforts to tackle the climate and nature crises.
Firstly, let me confirm to you that the new UK government is putting internationalism and multilateralism at the heart of all that we do.
We are resetting and deepening relationships with friends in Europe and beyond – many here in this room – to better face global challenges.
The UK’s Arctic Policy Framework continues to guide our approach, and we continue to update and develop that, guided by science and indeed the strategic challenges that we face.
And, as it makes clear, we are committed to the Arctic Council in our role as a State Observer, recognising that it has been at the heart of a stable and peaceful region for much of the past three decades.
And indeed, the Council has an important role to play in articulating a strong voice and delivering effective governance.
It has potential to act as a multilateral ‘glue’, with the strength to bind together a fragmented world.
So, our objectives for the Council are characterised by strong co-operation and constructive dialogue – objectives I think we all share in this room.
And I commend Norway’s work as Chair of the Council to re-start the technical engagement in the face of the very significant geopolitical challenges.
We will do what we can to further those efforts, as part of our commitments to the multilateral system.
But we are of course not naïve. The security of the Arctic is clearly at risk – the impacts of Putin’s illegal war in Ukraine cannot be underestimated, let alone the wider geopolitical cooperation and competition landscape, and that will impact on all of us in this important region.
So alongside our resolute support for Ukraine, we are working tirelessly with partners for peace, security and stability, particularly for all of those areas of Europe on what I call the flanks – including the Western Balkans, the Nordic states and beyond.
We recognise Russia’s rights and role as an Arctic state.
But we will not tolerate attempts to wreck regional stability, disrupt critical infrastructure or restrict freedom of navigation.
There is no global security without Arctic security. So, we are ready to protect and – if necessary – assert our rights.
And on Wednesday, I was privileged to take a tour with the Norwegian Coastguard in Tromsø, to see how security threats and environmental changes are monitored in the High North.
They have a tough job in tough conditions – and all credit to them.
And as someone who’s participated alongside our training with Royal Marines in Northern Norway, I have huge respect for all of those who regularly brave the Arctic wilderness to ensure we are ready to protect it.
And let me be clear that the UK’s commitment to NATO, to the Joint Expeditionary Force, the Northern Group, and the Arctic Security Forces Roundtable is ironclad, including of course our close partnership with our hosts, Iceland.
And the NATO alliance is of particular significance to me personally. Many members of my family have served in NATO operations over many years, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with allies.
Of course, beyond Putin’s menace, climate change and the global marine biodiversity loss that we are tragically seeing is the other immense threat that we are all discussing here looming over the Arctic.
We are witnessing devastating impacts – on glaciers, fish stocks and weather patterns – with implications for us all.
And we are painfully aware that global warming is driving geopolitical competition over resources beneath the ice too.
And so that’s why my colleague, the Foreign Secretary David Lammy, made clear in his first major policy speech last month that efforts to address the climate and nature crisis are central to our new government’s work.
So at COP29 we will press the global community to accelerate ambition to reduce our emissions and push for an agreement on an ambitious new climate finance goal.
And we have also seen how research to understand and assess climate change – including through the Arctic Council – has been an important basis to build collaboration. We will continue to back this.
But we have already invested over one hundred and thirty-five million pounds in Arctic research over the last decade, including through UK centres of expertise.
Our Royal Research Ship, Sir David Attenborough, paid its first visit to Greenland over the summer, and I was delighted to hear about their work here last night.
That data gathered will help us understand crucial changes and their impacts on the Arctic Ocean and beyond.
Now, our Advanced Research and Invention Agency has launched an eighty-one-million-pound call for proposals for further research around Greenland.
This new programme will develop an early warning system for ‘tipping points’, providing climate data of local and global importance.
And we are committing further funds to collaborations with Arctic Council Working Groups, helping to enhance understanding of climate impacts on the livelihoods of Arctic indigenous people, including many other things.
And I think it’s important to say here that, while we tend to focus on modern science for solutions, indigenous knowledge often holds the key to understanding and responding to the climate and nature crises, on top of the absolute necessity of working in respect and partnership with all of those communities and peoples who live in these wonderful lands, understand these lands, and steward their resources, and indeed their beauty.
So further research will be key, and will build on our programmes, for example with Canada and the Inuit Nunangat, which is looking into climate-driven changes in that Arctic homeland, as well as impacts on health and wellbeing. I have been delighted to meet representatives of communities from across the Arctic at this fantastic conference.
So this is just a brief flavour of our work, of our partnerships, of our hope for the future.
But let me say in conclusion that the future of the Arctic depends on every one of us, working together, in a spirit of strong collaboration and co-operation.
I hope that when we look back, 25 years from now, it’ll be from the perspective of a more secure, peaceful and indeed sustainable era. Not least here in the Arctic, but also globally.
Thank you very much.