Author: Over the Circle

In recent years, the volume level in the longstanding debate about whether the time was ripe for security issues to be added to the growing array of Arctic regional organisations, either connected to or cooperating with the Arctic Council, has increased. One recent article was very critical of the idea of an Arctic security forum,… Continue reading Arctic (In)security and the Question of Cooperation →

For the second time in less than a year, Icelanders will be voting in parliamentary elections on 28 October, after another period of political upheaval which saw the unstable centre-right coalition government collapse last month. This vote will also mark the second time in a year that an election was forced due to a political… Continue reading Iceland’s Election: Take Two →

The devastation brought to the Caribbean this month, including to the US Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, caused by Hurricane Maria has once again pushed a nearly century-old law back into the spotlight. From its introduction, the Jones Act [pdf], as part of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, has been subject to a great deal of… Continue reading Puerto Rico and the Jones Act: The Alaska Connection →

                    This week it was announced that China’s second icebreaking vessel, currently under construction at Jiangnan shipyard (Shanghai) to be the sister ship of the icebreaker Xuelong or ‘Snow Dragon’ (雪龙), would be launched under the name- Xuelong 2 / Snow Dragon 2. The new ship, which will… Continue reading Double Dragon: China’s Next Icebreaker Gets a Name →