Last year, we visited Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien to talk about the Arctic. In late January, we visited Russia's foreign minister, Igor Ivanov. President Nikolayev of Russia's Sakha Republic, known as Yakutia, was with me both times. Both national leaders agreed with us that more power over common resources needs to be in local hands. The job can't be done with command and control from Moscow or Washington.
Distances are too great.
The understanding of local needs, local problems, is too hard to communicate. It's not an issue of malice, it's an issue of ignorance. A second place to fight this ignorance is the Arctic Council. It has made strides in sharing environmental information. I hope you convey that same message if you meet with the Council members coming here in May.