Lieutenant Commander Jeremy McKenzie, US Coast Guard Academy Presents: "The Bering Strait: Reducing Risk Through International Cooperation and Capability Improvements"SECWAC Event: ''The Bering Strait'' May 25 in New London
We hope you can join us for this month's meeting.
When: Tuesday, May 25, 2017, 5:30pm reception, 6:00pm presentation
Where: Crozier Hall (Student Center, second floor) at Connecticut College, Mohegan Ave, New London
The Topic: The Bering Strait: Reducing Risk Through International Cooperation and Capability Improvements
Presenter: Lieutenant Commander Jeremy McKenzie, Public Policy Instructor - Department of Humanities, and Researcher - Center for Arctic Study and Policy, at the United States Coast Guard Academy
Dinner: Following the presentation, join Jeremy, guests, and fellow members for a delicious meal at Connecticut College. $35/person.
A reservation is required by Tuesday, May 23 to attend the dinner; please call 860-912-5718 or email info@secwac.org to make your reservation (vegetarian option available if reserved in advance). Checks payable to SECWAC (or credit card payment) are accepted before the meeting by Courtney Assad.
Learn more about our 2017 season programs at secwac.org.
The Topic
Serving as the sole connection between the Pacific and Arctic Oceans, the Bering Strait is seeing increased maritime activity and risk due to environmental changes that are opening the Arctic. The increased activity in the Bering Strait region poses cross-border management challenges that are complicated by diplomatic tension between the U.S. and Russia. Jeremy will explore these management challenges through the following questions:
2. Are there gaps in existing agreements that prevent effective bilateral collaboration?
The recommendations from research (interviews and other data) include decoupling the Arctic from other aspects of the U.S. and Russian bilateral relationship, the immediate resumption of bilateral oil spill and search, and search and rescue (SAR) exercises, and the establishment of a joint maritime domain awareness center (MDAC) to maintain situational awareness and implement maritime traffic control measures.
Coming up
Join us on June 6 for our final meeting of the season, "A Turbulent China Takes on the World," wth author and The Daily Beast columnist, Gordon G. Chang. This presentation will be located at Old Lyme Middle School.
1. How effectively are international and bilateral agreements governing maritime activity in the Bering Strait region being implemented at the “street level” by responsible agencies on either side of the border?