I'll start with a short answer to the question before handing it over to Greg.
First of all, on the Northwest Passage, it is important to remember that the principal opponent of Canada's legal position is the United States, and both the United States and Canada are members of NATO. I believe that many European NATO members regard the situation as one that first needs to be resolved between the two North American NATO members, and then the Europeans will follow the lead. Obviously the United States has more influence in NATO than Canada does, but I do believe it is essentially a bilateral issue that is susceptible to bilateral negotiations.
Roughly a year ago, I partnered with Paul Cellucci, the former U.S. ambassador to Canada, and we conducted a model negotiation involving leading American and Canadian experts, seven from each country. We spent two days trying to discuss how the two countries could cooperate and build confidence with respect to the Northwest Passage. We were working towards an American recognition of Canada's legal position. We made an astounding amount of progress.
I would ask your committee to urge the Canadian government and our diplomats to engage proactively with our American friends. As the ice melts and the activity increases, there will be security threats to Canada and the United States alike. By far the best way to deal with those security threats is to have the full force of a domestic legal system applicable to them, the full force of a domestic immigration legal system, of criminal laws. It's fairly obvious that only one country's domestic legal system could apply to the Northwest Passage, i.e., the coastal state along the entire 3,000 kilometres of that waterway.
The final point has to do with the Nordic countries and the relationship with Russia. Although there are tensions and occasional problems, most of which originate from the Russian side, the Norwegians have managed to make considerable progress, negotiating a maritime boundary in the southern Barents Sea with Russia. They also have a complex but ongoing relationship over the Svalbard Islands and Spitsbergen. The Norwegians have learned to work with the Russians. Although I don't support the Russian government or many of its actions, I am pleased that Russia is embracing the Law of the Sea and working on international cooperation in this area.