State International Responsibility in the Exploitation of Arctic Natural Resources: Between Sovereign Rights and the Duty of Environmental Protection

Mahshid Yaraghi Esfahani¹ Leila Saeedi²

1) Assistant Professor of International Law, Department of International Law, Faculty of Law and Theology, Shahid Ashrafi Esfahani University, Isfahan, Iran.
2) LLM student, Department of International Law, Faculty of Law and Theology, Shahid Ashrafi Esfahani University, Isfahan, Iran.

IOI Code : ABKH-ACZEFG
Publication : 4th International Conference on Applied Researches in Humanities, Economics, Management & Accounting(icrhema.com)
Abstract :
    In recent decades, the Arctic has become one of the world s most significant geopolitical, economic and environmental regions, as melting sea ice and advances in exploration technology have made its vast oil, gas, fisheries and shipping resources increasingly accessible. Using a descriptive-analytical method, this paper examines the international responsibility of states in exploiting Arctic resources in light of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), international environmental law and the International Law Commission s Articles on State Responsibility. The findings show that the sovereign rights of coastal states within their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves are not absolute, and their exercise is conditioned on the precautionary principle, due diligence and international cooperation. Contrary to a common assumption, the absence of a comprehensive treaty regime for the Arctic is not an inadvertent gap but a deliberate choice made by the five coastal states in the 2008 Ilulissat Declaration, which affirmed that UNCLOS provides an adequate framework for managing the region; notably, however, the United States, one of the five signatories, has still not ratified that Convention. Recent developments, including the suspension of cooperation by seven Arctic Council members with Russia following its invasion of Ukraine and the overlapping continental shelf claims of Russia, Canada and Denmark, have further complicated the effective enforcement of responsibility rules. The International Court of Justice s 2025 Advisory Opinion on the obligations of states in respect of climate change, by clarifying standards of attribution and causation for cumulative environmental harm, offers new analytical tools for assessing state responsibility in the Arctic. The paper concludes that strengthening regional cooperation, developing specialized environmental rules and establishing effective compensation mechanisms, without necessarily replacing the existing regime, can help balance economic exploitation with the protection of one of the world s most fragile ecosystems.

Keywords : arctic state international responsibility law of the sea resource exploitation sustainable development