Aboriginal Nations, Sweden, Finland, Iceland Blocked From Attending Talks On "Preserving" Arctic

[hatrack]

Talks on preserving the Arctic amid a race for its rich resources opened Monday as protestors urged the meeting to focus on damage to the fragile region from climate change. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the summit in Chelsea, Canada, that "those who have legitimate interests in the region" should be heard amid anger from some countries and indigenous peoples that they had been excluded. "We need all hands on deck because there is a huge amount to do, and not much time to do it," the top US diplomat warned.

"What happens in the Arctic will have broad consequences for the earth and its climate. The melting of sea ice, glaciers
, and permafrost will affect people and ecosystems around the world," she said. "And understanding how these changes fit together is a task that demands international cooperation."

The talks brought together foreign ministers from Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the United States. They were to discuss how to manage the economic opportunities and protect the fragile ecosystem in the frozen north, as the Arctic sea ice melts away and companies line up to drill for oil and gas. "There is an urgency driving our efforts," Clinton warned. "As the sea ice recedes and waters warm, we expect more fish to move into the Arctic. Where fish go, fishing vessels will follow.

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Aboriginal groups and several nations, including Iceland, Sweden and Finland, have also been angered at being left out of the talks. "It is worrying that we see the development of an inner core of five coast states of the Arctic meeting outside the architecture of the Arctic Council," British EU representative Diana Wallis said earlier this month. "This could seriously undermine a very precious cooperation and it has to be treated with some seriousness." The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental group of Arctic states and Inuit indigenous groups that meet biannually. Canada and others blocked the European Union from being granted "observer" status.

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http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Arctic_talks_open_amid_protests_999.html

[skeptical cynic]

1. Indigenous peoples are becoming a thorn in the side of

multinational corporations and the empires that do their bidding.

Consider the problems Chevron in having with the indigenous people of Ecuador.

Time to leave them out of the equation, like in the good ol' days.