The Arctic Region, whilst oftentimes forgotten due to its geographic isolation, has grown in its political relevance due to its environmental, economic and military importance. Today the United Nations Security Council came together once again to discuss the regulatory power of the Arctic in relation to hard weapons. In the first few minutes of the discussion round, the representative of the Arctic Council directly addressed the Chinese representative. The delegate made their frustration towards the nation’s representative known by saying a Chinese proverb which translates to “Betraying your friends is a very bad thing to do”. The delegate followed this up by saying, “We will talk to them in a language that they understand.”, to emphasize China’s struggle to listen to the Arctic's wishes. The delegate bluntly calls into question the relationship between the Arctic, China and Russia as he feels like the two nations are repeatedly “backstabbing” the representation of Arctic's best interests. The representative of the Arctic Council explains this altercation because of pent-up frustration due to the constant neglect to the organization’s sufferings. In addition, the Council's representative initiated a minute of silence due to the “slow death” of their organization. The Russian Federation chose to remain seated during this minute of silence.
- Penelope Klaus, International Affairs Correspondent for The Guardian
