The Arctic: U.S., Russia are Arctic Nations facing an intruder- China in a grab for massive resources
“The Arctic is among the world’s most strategically significant regions – the keystone from which the U.S. Air and Space Forces exercise vigilance,” BARBARA BARRETT, Secretary of the Air Force
The United States is an Arctic nation, and a number of trends impact U.S. interests in the complex security environment.
The Arctic environment requires specialized training and acclimation by both personnel and materiel. The ability to operate and survive extreme cold weather (down to -60 degrees Fahrenheit) is fundamental for contingency response or combat power generation in many potential operating areas. The Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, offering some of the best training airspace in the world, and the Air Force’s polar survival school at Eielson AFB represent a strong foundation on which to build. To ensure Arctic operational readiness.
A substantial portion of the Department’s Arctic expertise resides with the Air Reserve Component. The Alaska Air National Guard conducts civilian and military search and rescue operations with its Guardian Angel personnel, HH-60 helicopters, and HC-130 aircraft. The Air Force Reserve operates F-22s out of Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, while the New York Air National Guard operates LC-130s, the DoD’s only ski-equipped transport and contingency aircraft. Both the Guard and Reserve play a critical role in supporting space missions at Clear, Alaska and Thule, Greenland.
Changes in the Arctic environment are transforming Arctic ecosystems.6 The environment is often cited as the greatest adversary to Arctic operations. Variations in weather and climate forecasting hamper missions and long-term planning for Joint Force needs and capabilities. Thawing permafrost affects infrastructure across the region, including Department of the Air Force hangars and runways. Reductions in single and multi-year polar ice are accelerating the rate of coastal erosion, putting Air and Space Forces’ already sparse infrastructure at risk.
Melting ice, transportation advances, and extraction innovation are exposing resources once thought inaccessible.
The Arctic is estimated to harbor over 90 billion barrels of oil reserves, 30% of the world’s untapped natural gas, and around one trillion dollars’ worth of rare earth minerals.7 Extended seasonal access, growth in commercial traffic, and an uptick in tourism increase international competition and the potential need for disaster response.
Russia is an Arctic nation. No other country has as much permanent military presence above the 66th parallel. Russia’s recent Arctic initiatives include refurbishing airfields and infrastructure, creating new bases, and developing an integrated network of air defense, coastal missile systems, and early warning radars to secure its northern approaches. Further, Russia seeks to regulate maritime traffic on the Northern Sea Route in ways that may exceed its authority permitted under international law. Close to 25% of Russia’s gross domestic product comes from the Arctic region. Reflecting this, Russia is expected to continue investing in the region to advance its economy and bolster national identity. The Russian military plays a significant role in securing these interests and may leverage ostensibly defensive capabilities for other purposes. Finally, Russia tightly manages its Arctic messaging to highlight its capabilities and control.
China is not an Arctic nation (its northernmost city, Mohe, shares roughly the same latitude of Philadelphia and Dublin), but it sees the region as important to its long-term economic and security interests.
China’s Arctic narrative attempts to normalize Chinese presence in the region, enhance polar operating capabilities, and gain a regional governance role. In 2018, China linked its Arctic activities to its One Belt, One Road initiative underscoring its strategic ambition toward the region’s vast quantities of rare earth minerals, hydrocarbons, and fisheries.
Alliances and partnerships represent key strategic advantages for the United States in the Arctic. The United States maintains strong defense relationships with six of the seven other Arctic nations. Four are NATO Allies: Canada, the Kingdom of Denmark (including Greenland), Iceland, and Norway; and two are NATO Enhanced Opportunities Partners: Finland and Sweden.
Defending the homeland is the first priority for the DoD. The Department of the Air Force is responsible for the majority of the architecture used to detect, track, and engage air and missile threats that could transit the Arctic. These architectural assets include COBRA DANE, which provides real-time missile data, and the new Long Range Discriminating Radar at Clear, Alaska, which provides persistent long-range, mid-course discrimination, precision, and tracking of missile threats. Adding to these capabilities, cooperation with Canada through NORAD is critical to the defense of the northern approaches. NORAD relies on radar systems like the aging North Warning System, a network of aerospace surveillance radars in northern Canada and Alaska, for early detection of adversary air threats.
The DoD’s ability to detect threats and defend North America is challenged by rapidly advancing strategic competitors’ capabilities. Today’s threats have longer range, better precision, and lower radar cross-sections. To counteract evolving threats.
The Department of the Air Force will enhance its missile defense surveillance system in the northern tier while continuing to work with Canada to identify materiel and non-materiel solutions to the North Warning System.
The Department of the Air Force will improve domain awareness through new technologies ranging from over the horizon radar to space assets.
With increasing levels of air and space traffic over the Arctic, it is imperative that the region remains a free and open domain. Air and Space Forces must retain the global access guaranteed under international law.
Fundamental to this access, Alaska bases provide air and space power to significant portions of USINDOPACOM and USEUCOM while simultaneously providing defense for North America’s northern and western flanks. Recent upgrades to Clear, Alaska’s Early Warning Radar enhance the detection of satellites, further enabling space combat power. Additionally, once the planned F-35 bed-down at Eielson AFB is complete, Alaska’s unparalleled concentration of fifth generation fighters will present a highly-effective power projection capability.
Supporting military, interagency, and civil Arctic activities, the Department provides year-round access to the Greenland ice sheet via ski-equipped LC-130s. Critically, long range strike aircraft provide reach, combat ability, and a growing sensor capability contributing to regional deterrence, vigilance, and power projection.
for extensive U.S. AF Arctic Strategy visit Af.Mil