Russian military activity and infrastructure build-up in the Arctic do not go unnoticed.

This was announced by Pentagon spokesman John Kirby during a briefing.

According to him, the US military is well aware of the actions of the Russian Federation in the region.

“Without going into specific conclusions of the intelligence analysis, I will note that, of course, we are following this very closely,” he said.

As Kirby pointed out, the Arctic is "a key territory, extremely important for the defense" of the United States.

He also called the region a "potential strategic corridor" between the Indo-Pacific region, Europe and the United States, which, according to the spokesman, "is vulnerable to increasing competition."

The Pentagon also said that as the Arctic ice melts, new opportunities for transit through the Arctic are opening up, as well as "natural barriers that Russia once relied on to protect its interests in the region are being removed."

"Now it (RF. -

RT

) seeks to strengthen its security by restoring Soviet-era airfields, expanding the network of missile systems for air and coastal defense, as well as developing capabilities to restrict and deny access and maneuver," the US Defense Department's website says.

The same post also contains an excerpt from the Pentagon's Arctic Strategy, published in 2019.

“To achieve their goals in these regions, strategic competitors may take malicious or coercive actions in the Arctic.

The Department of Defense (United States. -

RT

) must be ready to protect the interests of US national security by taking appropriate measures in the Arctic as part of maintaining a favorable balance of power in the Indo-Pacific region and Europe, "the agency quotes the document.

The day before, the chief of staff of the US Navy, Michael Gilday, said that in the last year alone, the United States conducted more than 20 different exercises and operations in the Arctic.

“Our presence in the Arctic is no longer rare;

it is becoming an integral part of our activities, especially, I would say, in the area of ​​responsibility of the European Command of the US Armed Forces, ”he said at an event organized by the Defense Writers Group.

His words are quoted on the website of the United States Naval Institute (USNI).

Arctic activity

Recall that in February and March 2020, joint US and Canadian maneuvers Arctic Edge - 2020 took place in the Arctic. About 1,000 military personnel of all types of United States troops and members of the Joint Operations Command of Canada took part in the training.

They were faced with the task of determining "the ability of the armed forces to conduct tactical actions in extremely cold weather conditions."

In addition, last year on March 2 in northern Norway began a large-scale exercise of NATO states Cold Response, which involved about 15 thousand troops from ten countries, including the United States.

It was planned that the maneuvers will take more than two weeks, but they were completed ahead of schedule due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As specified, the exercises were aimed "at practicing high-intensity combat operations in harsh winter conditions."

“Another important aspect of the exercise is to practice actions to use the significant potential of amphibious forces and assets.

This includes the practical development of interaction between the forces operating on the coast and the forces providing support from the coastal areas, ”- noted in a statement on the website of the Norwegian Armed Forces.

  • US military

  • © US ARMY

Already in March of this year, the United States and Canada held a joint missile defense exercise in the Arctic region, "United Sting" (Amalgam Dart).

This was announced by the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

The purpose of the maneuvers was to increase combat readiness and demonstrate "the ability to defend the northern approaches to the territory" of the United States and Canada.

Shortly before the start of these training sessions, NORAD and the US Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) published a joint strategy.

The document reports on the concern of the American and Canadian military about the intensification of the Russian Federation's activities in the Arctic region.

"The deployment by Russia of advanced long-range cruise missiles, capable, after being launched from its territory, to overcome the northern approaches and try to hit targets in the United States and Canada, has become the main military threat in the Arctic," the document says.

Meanwhile, on March 16, at a hearing in the US Senate Committee on Armed Forces, American General Glen Van Hirk spoke in favor of the idea of ​​forming a naval base in the American city of Nome (Alaska).

The need for such a step in the upper house of Congress was explained by the growing naval presence of the Russian side in the region and the military-technical lag of the United States.

"Catch up on lost time"

As noted by Konstantin Blokhin, a leading researcher at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, recent actions and statements by the American side indicate that the United States is increasingly thinking about its interests in the Arctic region.

“The Arctic is important to Washington, first of all, from the point of view of maintaining its world leadership.

However, the United States has already realized that they are seriously inferior to Russia in this region, which is one of the leading forces there, "the expert said in a conversation with RT.

As explained by Blokhin, at one time the United States, instead of concentrating on the development of the Arctic region, "focused on conducting military interventions in the Middle East."

“Now they need a colossal build-up of their military forces in the Arctic, including the naval.

However, it will take the United States many years to achieve such results as that of the Russian Federation.

To catch up and substantiate its presence claims, the US is creating new strategies and concepts.

But this will not help them quickly build up production capacity and create alternatives to Russian icebreakers, ”the expert said.

At the same time, the American leadership always violently and negatively reacts to Russia's efforts to strengthen the security system in its Arctic territories, Blokhin noted.

“It would be strange if Moscow did not do this in the face of intensified confrontation with the West.

Today, the Arctic is becoming a real treasure of natural resources, including gas and hydrocarbons, which are becoming less and less numerous on the planet.

The competition between the great powers is only getting tougher.

The United States is extremely alarmed that, due to the melting of the ice, the Russian Federation will gain access to all these riches, but they will not.

In addition, the United States has views on the Northern Sea Route, which in the future can be used much more efficiently than the Suez Canal, ”the analyst said.

As Lev Voronkov, professor of the MGIMO Department of Integration Processes, an expert on geopolitical problems of the modern Arctic, explained in a commentary to RT, the Russian Federation is "restoring its security infrastructure" in the Arctic region.

“At the same time, the efforts of the Russian side in this area are not directed against any other state, be it the United States or Canada.

Russia is concerned about ensuring its own interests and the safety of its routes in the Arctic, ”the expert said.

  • US Navy nuclear submarine Alexandria in the Arctic

  • © US Navy

At the same time, Voronkov stressed that, despite the aggressive attacks towards the Russian Federation and the accusations of the United States, the Arctic cooperation between the countries itself is still being built largely on the basis of consensus, common common interests and a joint desire to protect them.

“And what is sometimes reproduced by representatives of the American military or other departments, these are the costs of the internal political kitchen of the United States.

Specialists in the field, including the US representatives in charge of Arctic policy, quite calmly and balancedly assess the efforts that Russia is making to ensure the security of the Northern Sea Route and the region as a whole, ”the expert concluded.