Why is it difficult for Americans to increase their military presence in the Arctic
Washington is discussing strengthening its military presence in the Arctic, US Army Secretary Christine Wormut said. According to the minister, there are already American military facilities in the region and it is possible to conduct exercises with allies there. "Newspaper.Ru" dealt with the difficulties associated with the development of the Arctic by the Pentagon.
"We can do more, we are thinking how to use the opportunities that we already have in the Arctic. Obviously, this is a very important strategic place. We are studying what we can do there with the help of the armed forces," Wormut said.
According to military expert, editor of the magazine "Arsenal of the Fatherland", Alexey Leonkov, the United States began to explore the Arctic in 2018, having adopted several programs, including the "Arctic Roadmap".
"The United States tried to connect its allies Iceland, Norway and Canada to these programs so that they could design Arctic-class vessels and icebreakers. Now the United States is planning to release two new icebreakers, the prospect of their launching is 2024-2025. The United States does not have a developed infrastructure beyond the Arctic Circle. But they are working on its appearance - they have increased the contingent of troops in Alaska, designated a presence in Iceland," Leonkov said.
He noted that now the United States is creating warm hangars for F-35 fighters. They are also increasing the anti-missile component in Alaska: the number of missiles and the fleet of aircraft.
The US Coast Guard is currently armed with two icebreakers - Healy and Polar Star. The first one does not function due to a faulty engine, the second one was put into operation back in the 1970s. Earlier, The National Interest magazine called the state of the US icebreaker fleet "terrible", noting that its future "does not give hope for change." According to the publication, Washington is not coping with the implementation of the plan to replace obsolete ships and expand the icebreaker fleet, including due to funding problems.
Russia has the largest icebreaking fleet, it includes six nuclear and 20 diesel icebreakers. In addition, earlier, the commander-in-chief of the Russian Navy, Admiral Nikolai Evmenov, said that the Navy will have its own icebreaker - in 2022, the Russian navy will replenish the newest icebreaker of Project 21 180M "Evpatiy Kolovrat".
"All the bases that the United States has in the Arctic region are located in Alaska. The US Navy conducts regular exercises with submarines there every two years. That's what they really can do. As for the infantry, they have a Stryker brigade based in Alaska, but it is not particularly adapted to action in the Arctic. In what plan the United States is going to further develop this region is a big question, there can be no serious practical strengthening of the presence without an icebreaker fleet. The Pentagon wants to go to the Arctic. So far, he has little strength, but this may change," Chekmasov believes.
As for the desire of the United States to get unhindered access to the Northern Sea Route, this is a long-standing debatable issue between Russia and the United States.
"Russia regulates only civil shipping in this zone, this is fixed at the level of its national legislation. During the USSR, foreign warships could not get into the Arctic, a permissive procedure for their passage was introduced. Today, the United States considers Russia's regulations on the Northern Sea Route discriminatory. According to the US statement, Russia has no right to insist on the obligation of icebreaking with the participation of Russian icebreakers - icebreakers of other countries can also provide wiring. In their opinion, Russia cannot introduce either a notification or a permissive procedure for the passage of warships," he told the newspaper.Ru" Pavel Gudev, Head of the US and Canadian Policy Research Group in the World Ocean at the Center for North American Studies of the IMEMO RAS.
"It is clear that in the Arctic, the United States now, using the international legal framework, can make some one-time demarches - to fly somewhere, to pass, but it is impossible to fundamentally change the balance of forces, and quickly, in the Arctic. The United States does not have the technological capability to do this. Therefore, these statements in today's situation are rather provocative. There can be no real actions there," Sokolov summed up.
Irina Alshayeva
