It is almost impossible to study the law in the Arctic, and in particular the law of the sea, and not having heard of Donat Pharand. Indeed, his role in influencing the development and application of the law of the sea in the Arctic Ocean are undisputed and he has been the most notable scholar in justifying Canadian sovereignty over the Northwest Passage. It therefore does not come as a surprise that other notable scholars have come together to honour professor emeritus Donat Pharand in the truly impressive volume International law and politics of the Arctic Ocean.

In 17 articles, amounting to almost 460 pages, the influence of Donat Pharand on contemporary legal and political issues in the Arctic becomes obvious and it is thus that a wide array of topics, summarised under four distinct parts, leaving out the Introduction, are presented and analysed: Arctic Ocean regional governance; Arctic shipping and navigation; Bilateral relations; and Specific Arctic legal issues.

Part 1, Introduction, must be considered separately from the other parts as it in very concise terms summarises the importance of the findings of Donat Pharand over a period of fifty years. The only chapter in this part holds the descriptive title Donat Pharand - The Arctic scholar, written by Suzanne Lalonde. The author shows with great finesse how Pharand argued for different points of view and analysed different contexts regarding, for instance, the sector theory, historic waters, straight baselines or the legal status of the Northwest Passage. Quoting extensively from Pharand's scholarly work from the 1970s and 1980s up to his most recent article from 2007 (Pharand Reference Pharand2007), Lalonde presents the progressiveness of Pharand's work, his self-critical approaches as well as the timeliness of his findings. While this chapter is without a doubt of great significance for a better understanding of Pharand as a scholar, it could furthermore serve as a platform for discussion in university seminars or workshops as basic principles of the law of the sea are, in Pharand's words and also in direct French quotes, discussed and elaborated upon. Lalonde's admiration for Pharand shines through on numerous occasions and she concludes this engaging chapter with the words: ‘Pharand has shown us the way forward. One must hope that his voice, the voice of wisdom that comes after a lifetime's commitment to the Arctic, will be heard’ (page 51).

Albeit in title slightly misleading as not referring to the Arctic Ocean per se, the second part of the book contains three chapters dealing with different notions of an Arctic treaty as envisioned by Pharand, referring to an institutionalised Arctic regional council (Bartenstein and Charron) as well as an overarching treaty similar to that in the Antarctic (Jabour). While Bartenstein and Charon in their respective chapters compare Pharand's idea of a treaty-based Arctic Regional Council with the existing Arctic Council as well as with contemporary Arctic governance, Jabour draws on the Antarctic and convincingly fleshes out significant structural similarities between the north and the south in spite of their differences in legal status. While a treaty for the Arctic is commonly considered as not feasible (see most recently Young Reference Young2015), Jabour in conclusion, and certainly providing critical food for thought, asks: ‘Perhaps a hitherto realistic threshold that has prevented serious consideration of a treaty as now been reached’ (page 107)?

The third part of this thought-provoking volume in four chapters covers issues relating to the Polar Code, the LOS Convention and in particular its article 234 regarding ice-covered waters, as well as the status and politics regarding the Northwest Passage. While, given the different subject matters, there are unavoidable overlaps in content with other volumes on the issue (most notably Weidemann Reference Weidemann2014), the focus on the Canadian perspective makes the complexity of the issues ever more clear. Furthermore, these chapters provide significant input for the academic debate and are as such an important contribution for the discourse on Arctic law of the sea and navigation. The somewhat provocative terminology in De Mestral's chapter, ‘armchair experts’ and ‘legal sceptics’ (page 124) and Rothwell's US-focused analysis on the legal status of the Arctic Straits underline the discussion-based incentive of these chapters.

The discussions surrounding the difference of perception regarding Arctic Straits is further emphasised in the third part of this book. While US-Canada relations stand at the fore, draw on Pharand's scholarship, explain and discuss historical and contemporary issues pertaining to the Northwest Passage as well as the sector theory, it is especially the chapter by Edge and VanderZwaag which caught this reviewer's attention. The reason is the detailed assessment of bilateral relations between Canada and Russia, at the same time bringing to the surface the many shared interests in the Arctic, the different levels and facets of cooperation as well as, after all, the fragility thereof: while starting off with a quote by former Russian ambassador to Canada Mamedov from 2009 which highlights the peaceful cooperation between the two countries, the authors’ postscript further shows Canada's ‘Arctic reactions’ relating to the crisis in Ukraine which resulted in Canada temporarily suspending this cooperation as a direct political response.

Russian and Canadian practices regarding the sector principle constitutes the core issue of Oude Elferink's marvellous first chapter of part 4, weakening any claims regarding uncontrolled Russian practice in the context of its Arctic ‘claims.’ To the contrary, Oude Elferink shows how closely Russia adheres to international law while at the same time unveiling the shortcomings in Russia's reliance on the sector principle. In how far the law of the sea and the application of territorial sea baselines is impacted by changing physical conditions, already observed by Pharand in 1973 (Pharand Reference Pharand1973), is further elaborated upon in Schofield's and Sas’ chapter. By writing ‘elaborated upon’ this reviewer refers to a chapter of utmost precision, by far exceeding commonly found article length in a volume like this. Including two annexes and a bibliography for ice and maritime delimitation, this chapter amounts to 124 pages of which 43 are written text. In this reviewer's opinion a shortened paper would have made the challenging but highly intriguing content more easily accessible. As it stands, however, legal analysts will find a wealth of information in this chapter. Others not too familiar with the topic might want to look for more compressed articles on the issue. The two last chapters in this part and of the book on Arctic delimitation as well as Arctic information platforms and international law seem somewhat ‘squashed’ by Schofield's and Sas’ contribution and from and editorial perspective should have been placed earlier. Especially Serdy's thorough analysis of the outer continental shelf and Canada's delimitation with neighbouring states, particularly in light of the US non-ratification of the UN law of the sea convention, is noteworthy.

International law and the politics of the Arctic Ocean is a book which truly honours Donat Pharand and the editors must be applauded for having generated such an outstanding volume. While providing core knowledge on the Arctic’s, and particularly Canada’s, legal environment, the contributions are skilfully chosen as to represent substantial findings that Pharand has produced over his long career. Yet, these are not only represented, but discussed, expanded and adjusted to current realities in a thought-provoking and inspiring manner. In order to further develop legal and political scholarship in the Arctic, this book is of crucial importance.