I
t’s a region rich in resources, especially oil and natural gas. Not coin-
cidentally, old enemies — and even old friends — are ramping up their ef-
forts throughout the region to explore, stake their respective claims, and
fl ex their military muscle. And not surprisingly, all of these factors have
gotten Washington’s attention. ■ What is surprising is that we’re not
talking about the Middle East. In fact, aside from the In fact, Russia claims more than 50 percent of the area
region’s vast natural resources, nothing could be more as its own exclusive economic zone. In late 2008, Rus-
different than the Middle East — with its sweltering sian President Dmitry Medvedev encouraged his govern-
temperatures and overlapping population groups — ment to “fi nalize and adopt a federal law on the southern
than the frozen, sparsely inhabited Arctic. border of Russia’s Arctic zone.”
Worse, Moscow has made these claims in a brazen
Oil rush military context, signaling a fait accompli. Gen. Vladimir
he newfound interest in the Arctic arguably Shamanov, head of Russia’s combat training director-
T
is a function of two factors. The fi rst factor ate, announced in 2008 that Russia has begun training
is the skyrocketing worldwide demand for “troops that could be engaged in Arctic combat mis-
energy. The prospect of rising oil prices in sions” and has increased the “operational radius” of
the long term provides new opportunities and incen- its northern submarine fl eet. Plus, Russian long-range
tives to explore this resource-rich frontier. bombers have started fl ying sorties again in the region
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) estimates the Arc- after more than a decade of post-Cold War quiet.
tic might hold 1,670 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and
90 billion barrels of oil, equaling 30 percent of techni- Divided allies?
cally recoverable reserves of world oil and 13 percent of ussia seems determined to slice off a size-
world gas. As Bloomberg News reports, that’s “more than
all the known [oil] reserves of Nigeria, Kazakhstan, and
Mexico combined and enough to supply U.S. demand for R
able piece of the Arctic pie — in violation
of international agreements limiting claims
more than 200 miles offshore. Canada,
12 years.” About a third of this oil is in Alaskan territory. Denmark, Norway, and the U.S. all have protested Rus-
These resources will be increasingly recoverable sia’s actions. But more than protests will be needed to
and transportable because the fabled Northwest Pas- thwart Moscow’s Arctic ambitions. It is essential for the
sage, once frozen most of the year and navigable only U.S. and its Arctic allies to consider their shared inter-
by heavy-duty icebreakers, is thawing. That brings us to ests and seek a common front. But that might be easier
the other factor fueling Arctic activity: the opening up said than done. After all, even these old friends have
of new transit routes. The Congressional Research Ser- disagreements in the Arctic:
vice (CRS) notes an ice-free Northwest Passage could ■ As the CRS details, Canada contends that an ice-free
“cut shipping routes between Europe and Asia by 3,000 Northwest Passage “would be an inland waterway and
to 4,000 miles.” would therefore be sovereign Canadian territory,” while
Donald Gautier of the USGS cautions that the region the U.S. argues, “the passage would constitute an in-
“will not ratchet up global production like a new Saudi ternational strait between two high seas.” Washington
Arabia.” However, one of the region’s two nuclear pow- reiterated this position in its 2009 Arctic Region Policy
ers certainly is ratcheting up the tension. (ARP). This prickly sovereignty issue has kept the two
On a 2007 expedition, Russia planted its fl ag under allies sparring at the highest level.
the ice, far beyond the internationally recognized 200- ■ Unlike its Arctic neighbors, the U.S. has not rati-
mile limit. The lead explorer provocatively declared, fi ed the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UN-
“The Arctic is ours.” CLOS). However, the treaty has bipartisan backing.
102 MILITARY OFFICER SEPTEMBER 2009
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