Follow Ari on Twitter | Send tips and insights to ahawkins@politico.com The Arctic Council chair will transfer from Russia to Norway this week, and ambassador Morten Høglund is pledging to revive communications stalled in the aftermath of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The council — which includes Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States — functions as the main forum for cooperation on Arctic issues like environmental protection and access to natural resources. Over more than two decades, the bloc has delivered binding agreements on pollution, scientific cooperation and maritime law. Tension in the Arctic: That kind of coordination could be harder to come by as Russia’s war effort stretches into a second year. “We are not in a situation of business as usual,” Grantly Franklin, a spokesperson for Canada’s foreign affairs department, told Global Insider. A U.S. State Department spokesperson echoed the line in an emailed statement. After the onset of the invasion, Western nations, including Canada, the U.S. and Norway, announced their intention to suspend all meetings of the Council and its subsidiary bodies. Countries have since resumed work on some projects that do not involve Russia. But Oslo’s optimistic: When asked about Russia’s role going forward, Høglund said Norway will “consult with all member states” on how to restart more activities and meetings. “The preparations for the transition meeting is going according to plan,” he said over email. Meanwhile: China, which sees the Arctic as a strategic transport route to Europe, has vowed to play a supportive role in restoring the council’s operations. Last year, Beijing vowed not to recognize the council without participation from Moscow, a signal of their rising influence in the Arctic. THE WEEK AHEAD Monday: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will greet members of the Japan-South Korea parliamentary league and later trade and business representatives in Seoul. The meetings come one day after Kishida met South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in a show of unity amid rising threats from China and North Korea. Tuesday: Southeast Asian finance ministers meet for the first day of the 42nd ASEAN Summit in Indonesia, and are expected to discuss ASEAN centrality and de-dollarization. Thursday: Title 42, the Trump-era policy that made it easier to expel migrants from the U.S. during the pandemic, is set to expire. Høglund will represent Norway to officiate the handover of the chairmanship of the Arctic Council from Russia. The meeting will take place virtually. Saturday: Stockholm is slated to host the EU Indo-Pacific Ministerial Forum. EU countries have expressed unease over China’s presence along the Himalayan border. Sunday: Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections take place as ruling powers complicate efforts to expand NATO. Polling indicates the candidates are neck and neck. Click here for live updates. BORDER ON THE BRINK AS TITLE 42 EXPIRES Communities along the Mexican border are bracing for a stream of asylum-seekers as the U.S. prepares to end the pandemic-related border policy known as Title 42. El Paso officials are preparing temporary shelters at district schools after mayor Oscar Leeser announced a state of emergency in the border city last week. Talking numbers: The top U.S. border official Troy Miller told Congress he’s bracing for up to 10,000 migrants to cross the southern border daily upon expiry, twice the daily average in March. Goodbye 42: The immigration policy for public-health-related crises, invoked by the Trump administration and kept by President Joe Biden, allowed authorities to rapidly expel hundreds of thousands of people without chance for asylum. Both the Trump and Biden administrations have defended Title 42 as a tool to curb Covid-19 outbreaks in border facilities, contradicting CDC experts, who said the policy unfairly stigmatized migrants. Border bailout: Mexico agreed to continue to accept migrants from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela who are turned away from the U.S., which immigration experts warn could further overwhelm border cities. TURKISH ELECTION AMID EARTHQUAKE OUTCRY Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu are making their final push for voters at dueling campaign rallies less than a week ahead of their presidential contest. A six-party coalition has united behind Kilicdaroglu, who has capitalized on public anger over the government's handling of a February earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people. That bloc has called for Turkey to enhance ties with Europe. On Stockholm: Erdogan has refused to back Sweden’s bid to join the NATO military alliance after a series of demonstrations took place in Stockholm where anti-Islam activists desecrated the Muslim holy book. Kilicdaroglu in contrast has told reporters he is hopeful that Turkey will approve Sweden’s application before the NATO summit in July. SULLIVAN IN SAUDI: National security adviser Jake Sullivan discussed a possible major rail and port network to link India and the Gulf on a visit to Riyadh on Sunday, Axios reported. The White House is pushing the project as China’s influence in the Middle East grows. CLINTON IN OTTAWA: Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton joined Canadian PM Chrystia Freeland for a discussion focused on threats to democracy and human rights at the Liberal convention in Ottawa on Friday, warning that failing to stop Russia would be “disastrous in terms of unleashing Chinese aggression.” Watch the full interview here.
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