 | Politics of the Northwest Passage Subjects: Territorial waters -- Northwest Territories -- Arctic Archipelago; Shipping -- Political aspects -- Northwest Territories -- Arctic Archipelago; Canada -- Boundaries -- Arctic regions; In August 1985, the United States Coast Guard icebreaker Polar Sea sailed through the Northwest Passage without requesting Canadian permission. The voyage served to highlight the American belief that the channels of the Canadian Arctic archipelago are an international strait. As such, it challenged Canada's understanding that the Northwest Passage has historically been an integral part of Canada's national domain. In September of 1985, the Canadian government made explicit its claim to exclusive jurisdication over the Passage and associated waters. The contributors to Politics of the Northwest Passage describe the way Canada handled its Arctic marine dilemmas during the decade before this declaration, and analyse the problems Canada will face in maintaining its claim in the future. |
