Pound-foolish

So much for giving the Cons credit for dealing with Canada's northern sovereignty issues, as they're inexplicably pinching pennies on exactly the diplomatic efforts which would otherwise have stood to be strengthed by an increased Arctic presence:

Ottawa dismissed its ambassador to the world's main circumpolar council, Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay said, putting efforts to bolster its claims to vast Arctic territories in doubt.

Arctic Council envoy Jack Anawak was fired last month and his job was eliminated...

Anawak's duties would be assumed by senior officials at Canada's foreign affairs department, officials said.

But critics said the move undermines Canada's dealings with its Arctic neighbors on common issues, including land claims and measures to fight global warming...

The move could weaken Canada's fight over several territories claimed by other countries in the Arctic, critics said.

Canada is currently at odds with Denmark over the tiny, uninhabitable Hans Island between Ellesmere Island and Greenland, and is feuding with Russia over rights to overlapping parts of the Arctic continental shelf.

As well, Ottawa and Washington disagree over control of the famed Northwest Passage and the resource-rich Beaufort Sea, which touches both Alaska and Canada's northern territories.

The disputes have grown in importance as scientists believe that global warming could open up the Northwest Passage to year-round cargo shipping by 2050, and allow the exploitation of resources like oil and natural gas in the Arctic...

The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental forum set up to address Inuit or Arctic people's concerns and challenges. Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, the United States and Russia are members.

Considering the billions of dollars being poured into icebreakers in an attempt to assert sovereignty over Canada's northern areas, it would seem a reasonable investment to have at least one envoy dedicated to working with our northern neighbours within a well-established structure.

But for the Cons, diplomacy across the polar region and the concerns of Canada's Inuit are apparently of so little value as not to be worth dedicating a single position. Which only makes it all the more certain that the most important challenges and opportunities present in Canada's north will continue to be ignored as long as the Cons are in power.

(Via catnip.)