30.10.2022, 07:31
Zitat:Russian Aggression in Ukraine Boosts Arctic Security Concernshttps://news.usni.org/2022/10/26/russian...y-concerns
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has dramatically altered how the seven western nations in the Arctic Council approach the High North, creating a new emphasis on security in the region, a panel of regional diplomatic and security experts said Tuesday.
“We’re in new space,” David Balton, executive director of the Arctic Executive Committee in the Office of Science and Technology, said. “I’m not sanguine how the transition from the Russian chairmanship” of the council will proceed next year, he added, referring to Russia’s current role as the chair of the organization. Historically, the council had steered away from security issues. It concentrated on regional cooperation in scientific research, especially on climate and oceans, responding to natural disasters and emergencies, cooperation in law enforcement through a coast guard forum and the 4 million people who live in the Arctic.
Instead of five NATO members on the council, as in 2021, there soon will be seven. Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership following Moscow’s Feb. 24 unprovoked attack on Ukraine.
At the Wilson Center event, Gregory Pollock, a senior Pentagon official responsible for Arctic affairs, said “Russia has changed the dynamic” of cooperation that marked Arctic affairs in recent years and now threatens peace and stability there, and also in Europe. [...]
Pollock pointed to the strategy’s first pillar as showing that the administration is “adopting a campaign mindset” to security there. Its primary focus is on defending the homeland and exploiting “probably our greatest advantage,” allies and partners. He also noted that the U.S. and the other six nations have already started to expand military exercises in the Arctic to understand how to operate under its extreme conditions, as the U.S. is expanding its icebreaker fleet to expand its presence in the region. [...]
On specific security concerns on climate and environmental change, the new strategy states: “We will work to improve Arctic observing, mapping, and charting; weather, water, and sea ice forecasting; subseasonal and seasonal prediction; emergency preparedness posture; and satellite coverage to enable efficient commerce and to ensure maritime and air safety.”
Schneemann