Lock, Stock, and Icebergs A History of Canada’s Arctic Maritime Sovereignty

In April 1988, after years of failed negotiations over the status of the Northwest Passage, Brian Mulroney gave Ronald Reagan a globe, pointed to the Arctic, and said “Ron that’s ours. We own it lock, stock, and icebergs.” A simple statement, it summed up Ottawa’s official policy: Canada owns the icy waters that wind their way through the Arctic Archipelago. Behind the scenes, however, successive governments have spent over a century trying to figure out how to enforce this claim. Drawing on recently declassified material, Lajeunesse guides readers through the evolution of Canada’s Arctic sovereignty, showing how the Northwest Passage and the surrounding waters became Canadian.