The Contribution of Space Technologies to Arctic Policy Priorities

report also proposed the establishment by 2020 of a Nordic polar orbit satellite system that could provide frequently updated real-time images of the situation at sea for effective maritime monitoring and crisis management, as well as communications capabilities. 7.2.3 Role of Satellite Systems COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS (Impact Medium) Robust, reliable, and efficient communications systems (high speed internet, digital network infrastructure, mobile phones) to support both the security and operational needs of border protection activities are essential. The presence of governments in the Arctic is forecasted to increase over the years in terms of personnel, vehicles, and budgets for the main purpose of sovereignty and border protection. Applications to support both the civilian government sector (coastal guard and local authorities), as well as military systems, require a range of connection speeds, which can mostly be satisfied below 75 0 N. However, above 75 0 N there is a lack of communication available to satisfy all current needs (especially monitoring type applications). As such, governments are looking to fund higher speed systems with coverage above 75 0 N. (ArticCOM Consortium, 2011) The use of GNSS is applicable to border protection for the roles of intercepting illegal goods that may be coming across borders and for tracking people that are inadmissible or may pose a threat to a country. Border control officers employ GNSS in their vehicles, vessels, or aircraft for navigation purposes when in pursuit of such goods or persons. In addition to navigation, in some circumstances they are important in determining in which jurisdiction or restricted area the incident occurs. NAVIGATION SYSTEMS (Impact High) Earth observation (EO) satellite systems provide valuable imagery that can be of benefit in identifying and tracking the movement of illegal goods such as drugs and nuclear materials. The most applicable systems for border protection purposes are the high resolution imaging systems, which are required to ensure positive identification of illegal activities. Significant challenges for identification and tracking applications in border protection include the differing repeat coverage cycles of the various systems, as well as trade-offs between spatial resolution and areal coverage. As a result, the integration of multiple EO data streams (e.g., optical, radar, infrared, etc.) may be necessary to meet application needs. The primary space-based surveillance technology is the reception by satellite of Automatic Identification Systems (AIS) signals emitted by marine vessels (S-AIS). S-AIS can contribute to surveillance by providing marine domain awareness in areas beyond the reach of terrestrial AIS systems, which do not exist in the Arctic. This application requires that S-AIS be correlated with other sensors and information sources, such as EO. S-AIS can be SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS (Impact Low) EARTH OBSERVATION SYSTEMS (Impact High)

used to ensure compliance with areas of operation and help to track vessels engaged in illegal activities.

The time from reception of the AIS message on the satellite to the time the data is available to the user on the ground (time latency) and time between satellite passes (update frequency) can present problems in the border protection context, where vessels will be moving as fast as possible in order to avoid apprehension. In addition, although illegal, vessel captains may turn off their AIS transmissions in order to help avoid detection. 7.3 Defence 7.3.1 Overview The primary roles of defence organizations are to protect their country’s security, deter war with other nations, and contribute to international peace and security. In addition to the military responsibilities of protecting national territory, airspace and maritime areas of the jurisdiction, defence organizations often support civil organizations in a variety of roles, such as:

yy Maintaining an adequate, reasonably uniform level of emergency preparedness; and

yy Responding to major emergencies and disasters.

yy And participate internationally in such areas as:

yy Multilateral operations through international organizations like the United Nations (UN) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO);

yy Humanitarian-relief efforts and restoration of conflict- devastated areas; and

yy Arms-control programs.

7.3.2 Policy Closely linked with border protection as a means of protecting Arctic nations’ sovereignty is defence, and a number of policy documents explicitly reference the importance of the defence role in the region. yy The Kingdom of Denmark Strategy for the Arctic 2011–2020 places emphasis on the tasks of the Danish Armed Forces in the Arctic. Measures being taken to strengthen the ability of the armed forces to conduct operations in the Arctic environment include: the establishment of an Arctic Command and an Arctic Response Force to strengthen theenforcementofsovereigntyandsurveillance, for instance through military exercises; and involvement of Greenland’s citizens in handling key tasks of the armed forces in the Arctic. yy According to Norway’s New Building Blocks in the North report, the Barents Sea will continue to have an important military strategic position, especially for Russia, but also for the USA concerning their nuclear weapons policy.

yy Russia’s Fundamentals of State Policy of the Russian Federation in the Arctic in the Period up to 2020 and

39 7. SOVEREIGNTY