“Moscow is reopening Soviet-era bases and deploying and testing new state-of-the-art navies, such as hypersonic missiles,” warns Jens Stoltenberg.
Both NATO and the United States government announced this week that they will increase their presence in the Arctic as a result of the increase in Russian military activity in the north of their territory. NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg stated in an interview for the German newspaper ‘Welt am Sonntag’ that the Atlantic Alliance “needs to increase its presence in the Arctic as Russia expands its influence in that area. “We are already investing in sea scouts to create a to get a clear picture of what is happening in the far north, but we will continue to step up our efforts,” Stoltenberg bets.
The also former Norwegian prime minister has expressed concern that both Russia and China are showing interest in the resource-rich region. “Moscow is reopening Soviet-era bases and deploying and testing new, state-of-the-art weapons, such as hypersonic missiles,” the NATO chief explained, after traveling to the Canadian part of the Arctic. with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
He pointed out that China is increasingly interested in the region because of its “great strategic importance”, especially now that the ice is melting, as new trade routes are opened to build a “polar silk road”. ». “It is the crucial link between North America and Europe. The Arctic is also the shortest distance between North America and Russia,” he explains.
On Friday, following Stoltenberg’s visit to the Canadian Arctic, the NATO Secretary General warned that the increased Russian presence in the region poses “a strategic challenge for the entire Alliance.” “Russia has established a new Arctic Command. It has opened hundreds of new and old Soviet-era Arctic military sites, including airfields and deep-sea ports. Russia is also using the region as a testing ground for many of its new weapons systems,” Stoltenberg said.
Trudeau, for his part, explained that the change in his country’s attitude towards NATO’s participation in the Arctic is due to the evolution of the geopolitical situation in recent months. “As we understand that Russia is a growing concern for all of us, it’s time to share with the Secretary General and NATO what Canada is doing through NORAD,” he said.
The US State Department, for its part, announced Friday that if the Senate approves the measure, it will appoint a special ambassador to the Arctic for the first time, whose goal would be “to promote the interests of the US and cooperation with the promote allies”. and partners in the Arctic,” said deputy spokesperson for the Office of Global Public Affairs, Vedant Patel.
“You will work with your counterparts in Arctic and non-Arctic countries, as well as indigenous groups, and work closely with national stakeholders, including state, local and tribal governments; corporations, academic institutions, nonprofits, other federal government agencies, and Congress,” Patel said.
The United States has urged the region to be “peaceful, stable, prosperous and cooperative”, after considering it has a “critical strategic importance to the North American country”.
Source: La Verdad
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