Source: CCTV
Speaking to CCTV, Carnegie-Tsinghua’s Wang Tao explained that China, which has observer status at the Arctic Council, can contribute a lot to the Arctic region. As a stakeholder in the Arctic area and a rising global power, “China is responsible for improving the global governance of the environment,” said Wang. Talking about climate change and the environment more broadly, Wang highlighted that China is coming under increasing pressure to sign on to binding emissions targets and that China should focus on improving both domestic and international environmental situations simultaneously, not domestic first.
There have been no geological surveys so far to gauge resources under the Arctic sea-bed, Wang continued, and the primary purpose of the Arctic Council is environmental preservation, not resource exploitation. Nevertheless, the five Asian countries joining the Arctic Council as observers highlights how these “energy hungry” countries are very interested in the potential natural resources stored in the Arctic, concluded Wang.