Politics of Svalbard
Svalbard lies under the sovereignty of Norway, but the Svalbard Treaty places several restrictions. Norway cannot use the archipelago for warlike purposes, cannot discriminate economic activity based on nationality and is required to conserve the natural environment. Uniquely, Svalbard is an entirely visa-free zone. Everybody may live and work in Svalbard indefinitely regardless of country of citizenship. Svalbard Treaty grants treaty nationals equal right of abode as Norwegian nationals. Non-treaty nationals may live and work indefinitely visa-free as well. "Regulations concerning rejection and expulsion from Svalbard" is in force on non-discriminatory basis.
Public administration of the archipelago is the responsibility of the
The archipelago was spotted in 1596, and soon companies from England, the Netherlands,
After the
In
History
Terra nullius
Svalbard was undoubtedly spotted by Willem Barentsz of the Netherlands in 1596,[4] although it may have previously have been discovered by Norsemen or Pomors.[5] The Muscovy Company of England started walrus hunting on Bjørnøya in 1604,[6] and from 1611 the company's Jonas Poole started whaling around Spitsbergen. The following year the Muscovy Company sent a new expedition, but was met by both Dutch and Spanish whalers. The company claimed exclusive rights to the area and sent away the contenders. In 1613, seven armed English ships were sent on an expedition that expelled a few dozen Dutch, Spanish and French vessels.[6]
This led to an international political conflict. The Dutch rejected exclusive rights for the English, claiming the mare liberum principle.
The English claimed sovereignty based on the false claim that Svalbard was discovered by
The English and Dutch partitioned the island in 1614, as the aggression was hampering the profitability of both groups. That year the Netherlands created Noordsche Compagnie as a whaling cartel. After the Muscovy Company fell into financial difficulties some years later, the Noordsche Compagnie got the upper hand and was able to dominate the whaling and fend off the English.[8] The company established itself in the northwestern corner of Spitsbergen (around Albert I Land) and only permitted a limited Danish presence. The English whaled further south, while the French were allocated to the north coast and the open sea. From the 1630s, the situation stabilized, and there were only a limited number of aggressive incidents.[10] By the end of the 18th century, whaling had ceased as the bowhead whale had reached local extinction.[11]
Establishing jurisdiction
Work on establishing an administration was initiated by Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld in 1871. After contacting the invested governments, he concluded that only Russia and Norway would object to an annexation of the island.[9] Fridtjof Nansen's endeavors raised the Norwegian public's consciousness of the Arctic, which again brought forth public support for annexation of Svalbard.[12] Industrialization and permanent settlements on Svalbard began in the 1900s with the introduction of coal mining.[13] This resulted in the need for jurisdiction. Firstly, there was no means to make a mining claim legal. Secondly, there was a need for conflict resolution, particularly regarding labor conflicts, which often saw the mining company and the workers have different nationalities.[14]
The Government of Norway took initiative in 1907 for negotiations between the involved states.
After significant political debate, a proposal to establish Svalbard as a
Cold War
Mining fell into an economic slump during the 1920s, resulting in several of the mining communities being closed. By the 1930s only
The political tension
Twenty-one miners were killed in an accident in Ny-Ålesund in 1962. The resulting
Normalization
The Svalbard Council was established on 1 November 1971. It consisted of 17 nonpartisan members who were elected or appointed from three different Norwegian groups—SNSK employees, government employees and others, although the ratio changed several times.[32] Svalbard Samfunnsdrift (SSD), a limited company which was responsible for public infrastructure and services in Longyearbyen, was established by Store Norske on 1 January 1989.[33] Responsibilities included healthcare, the fire department, the kindergarten, roads, garbage disposal, power production, the water and sewer system, the cinema, cultural actives and the library.[34] Ownership of SSD was taken over by the Ministry of Trade and Industry on 1 January 1993.[33] During the 1990s the authorities started a process to "normalize" Longyearbyen by abolishing the company town scheme and introducing a full range of services, a varied economy and local democracy.[35] The Svalbard Council changed its regulations from 1993 and allowed parties to run for election.[34] Longyearbyen Community Council was established in 2002, replacing the Svalbard Council and assimilating SSD.[36] From 1990 to 2011, the Russian and Ukrainian population fell from 2,300 to 370, while the Norwegian population increased from 1,100 to 2,000.[37]
Legislation
The Svalbard Treaty was signed on 9 February 1920 and came into effect on 14 August 1925. The treaty defines Svalbard as all islands, islets and skerries from 74° to 81° north latitude, and from 10° to 35° east longitude.[38] It secures full Norwegian sovereignty over the archipelago, but contains several restrictions: peaceful use of the islands, the non-discrimination of citizens and companies of signatory countries, the obligation to protect the natural environment and limitations in taxation. The treaty has 39 signatories.[39]
The
The
Institutions
Governor
The Governor of Svalbard (
Svalbard is a police district of the
The governor is also responsible for environmental protection, including nature supervision, environmental monitoring, species management, management of cultural heritage sites, administration of tourism and travel, oil spill contingency and safeguarding of the environment. The agency maintains two helicopters, a Eurocopter AS332 Super Puma and a Eurocopter AS365 Dauphin, the inspection vessel Nordsyssel as well as lighter equipment such as snowmobiles, cars and boats. The governor's jurisdiction applies to all land and the territorial waters up to 12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi) from land.[44]
Longyearbyen Community Council
Longyearbyen Community Council is the only elected local government in the archipelago and has many of the same responsibilities of a
Foreign nationals residing in Svalbard were eligible to vote in local elections in the past, but this right was taken away in 2022.[49]
Other
The Commissioner of Mining for Svalbard is part of the
Other public offices with presence on Longyearbyen are the
Issues
Peaceful use
Article 9 of the Svalbard Treaty specifies that no fortifications and naval bases may be built on Svalbard, nor can the archipelago be used for "warlike purposes".[52] The preparatory work of the treaty and later state practice has been to enforce that no military activity is carried out on the archipelago; however, the treaty as such does not ban, for instance, the construction of air stations[53] or military installations not regarded as defense works.[54] There is scholarly consensus that Article 9 is unclear, but that a military presence should only be established when there is an attack or threat of attack on Svalbard.[55] Norway can clearly not use Svalbard to make a threat of war,[56] but retains the right to self-defense against an attack on Svalbard.[57] However, the right does not allow Norway to bring Svalbard into war as part of self-defense of other parts of the country.[58]
The waters around Svalbard are of strategic significance for Russia as the
Sovereignty
Norway was prior to 1920 extremely active in gaining international support for Norwegian sovereignty, but following the treaty, Norwegian interest in the archipelago dwindled. From the start of the Cold War, Norwegian politicians wanted to avoid bringing the islands into superpower politics.[61] This resulted in a policy of avoiding agitating the Soviet Union, which again resulted in the Norwegian authorities actively working against both Norwegian and foreign activities on Svalbard which could raise tensions. Compared to mainland relations, which were dominated by deterring through NATO membership, the Norwegian policy on Svalbard was related to calming the Soviet Union. Similarly, while a foreign presence was encouraged on the mainland, it was strongly discouraged on Svalbard.[62]
Nearly all Norwegian activity during the Cold War resulted in a protest from the Soviet Union, which claimed, with basis in the treaty, that the archipelago was a demilitarized zone. The Soviet Union would protest against any foreign and most new Norwegian activity on the grounds that it violated Article 9, even if it was not remotely related to military activity. The fear of such a reaction led Norway to disallow practically all foreign and innovative use of the archipelago. Norway essentially had a "non-policy" managing Svalbard with a defensive and inconsequential reaction every time activity was proposed.[63]
Norway established a fisheries protection area surrounding Svalbard on 15 June 1977, which strictly regulates fisheries, but on a non-discriminatory basis. The zone extends 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) beyond the territorial waters. Norway maintains that the treaty's non-discrimination-policy only applies to land and the territorial waters and that Norway is free to establish an economic zone beyond that. Fishing vessels from Norway, Iceland, the Faeroe Islands, Russian and the European Union are awarded quotas for cod and herring; these and Greenland and Canada have been issued quotas for shrimp.[64] Norway and the Soviet Union, later Russia, disagreed regarding the border between the two counties' exclusive economic zones in the Barents Sea. Norway claimed the internationally recognized equidistance principle should apply, while Russia claimed that the unilateral meridian line be used. The issue was resolved with a compromise in 2010.[65]
Non-discrimination
The treaty ensures that all citizens and companies from signatory countries receive equal rights of access and residence. Norway may not discriminate—based on nationality—the rights to fish, hunt and conduct mining, trade, industry and maritime activity. However, these activities may be limited by non-discriminatory legislation.[39] Thus Norway is permitted to place regulations and prohibitions on basis of other objective criteria, or ban certain activities altogether or in certain geographic areas. The non-discrimination clause also does not ban nationality discrimination elsewhere than in economic activity. Specifically, research and scientific activities do not fall under the non-discrimination clause.[66]
A central part of the non-discrimination policy is the Mining Code of 7 August 1925.[67] It is uncertain if the code is internationally binding, or if it can be amended unilaterally by Norway.[68] Specifically, the commissioner issues licenses to search for minerals and state-owned and other owner's land and to register claims. To maintain a claim, the owner must work 1,500-man-hours per five years and pay an annual fee of 6,000 Norwegian krone. However, the Ministry of Trade and Industry may grant exceptions from the work obligation under specific conditions.[19]
The treaty only allows taxation to the extent that it covers the cost of administrating the archipelago and covering the services provided to the residents. The tax rate is therefore significantly lower than in Metropolitan Norway, including the absence of
References
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- Bibliography
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- Holm, Kari (1999). Longyearbyen – Svalbard: historisk veiviser (in Norwegian). ISBN 82-992142-4-6.
- Skagen, Sølvi (2005). Fra idé til film: Orions belte (in Norwegian). Vett & Viten. ISBN 82-412-0540-6.
- Ulfstein, Geir (1995). The Svalbard Treaty. Scandinavian University Press. ISBN 82-00-22713-8.