US creates ambassador for the Arctic amid fears over Russian, Chinese ambitions

Toronto: The United States plans to name an ambassador at large for the Arctic, reflecting the region’s growing strategic and commercial importance as its shrinking opens up new sea lanes and vast oil and mineral resources.

Russia has reopened hundreds of Soviet-era military sites in the region, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Friday (Canada time), a day after visiting the Arctic, saying Russian capabilities there pose a strategic challenge to the 30-nation alliance.

The Biden administration said it will upgrade its engagement with the Arctic Council and countries with an interest in a region that’s rapidly changing due to climate change.Credit: AP

Russia’s February 24 invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a “special military operation,” has heightened Western concerns about Russian ambitions around the world.

China, which describes itself as a “near-Arctic” state, also has ambitions in the region and has said it intended to build a “Polar Silk Road.” China has its eye on mineral resources and new shipping routes as ice caps recede with rising temperatures.

In a statement on Friday, the US State Department said President Joe Biden planned elevate the area’s importance within the US government by nominating an ambassador-at-large for the Arctic region, subject to the Senate’s advice and consent.

It did not say who would be nominated.

A US marine waves his troops onward after using Dutch landing craft to land near Sandstrand, Norway, March 21, 2022, during the Exercise Cold Response earlier this year.Credit: NATO

“An Arctic region that is peaceful, stable, prosperous, and co-operative is of critical strategic importance to the United States,” the Department said.

“As one of eight Arctic nations, the United States has long been committed to protecting our national security and economic interests in the region, combating climate change, fostering sustainable development and investment, and promoting co-operation with Arctic States, Allies, and partners,” it said.

The eight Arctic nations are Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Russia and the United States.

NATO nations span much of the Arctic region, with Russia taking up the remainder.Credit: AP

During his visit to Canada’s north, Stoltenberg said the shortest path to North America for Russian missiles and bombers is over the North Pole. He said Russia has set up a new Arctic Command and has opened hundreds of new and former Soviet-era Arctic military sites, including airfields and deep-water ports.

“We see a significant Russian military build-up with new bases, new weapons systems, and also using the High North as a test bed for their most advanced weapons, including hypersonic missiles,” Stoltenberg said at a Canadian military base in Cold Lake, Alberta.

Stoltenberg also noted Beijing plans to build the world’s largest icebreaker and is spending tens of billions of dollars on energy, infrastructure, and research projects in the north.

“Beijing and Moscow have also pledged to intensify practical co-operation in the Arctic. This forms part of a deepening strategic partnership that challenges our values and interests,” Stoltenberg said.

He also noted climate change is making the Arctic more accessible for militaries and welcomed Canada’s recent announcement that it will bolster its spending on defence.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday.Credit: AP

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who accompanied Stoltenberg, showcased some of the spending and activities that Canada is making in the north. Those include promises to allocate billions of dollars for new military equipment and capabilities, including plans to purchase new fighter jets and modernise North America’s ageing NORAD early-warning system with Washington.

“The ill-fated, unjustifiable decision of Russia to upend nearly 70 years of peace and stability of a rules-based order by invading a peaceful neighbour, has changed the way we need to look at the Arctic,” Trudeau said, alluding to the Russian attack on Ukraine.

Reuters, AP