Arctic security is a vital interest for every NATO nation |
Arctic security is a vital interest for every NATO nation
Climate change has triggered a new race for the Arctic. Emerging maritime routes, vast reserves of critical resources, and strategic military access make security in the Arctic a vital interest for every NATO nation.
The good news is that NATO has what it takes to meet current and future challenges when allies work together with purpose. That was my message to NATO foreign ministers in Sweden last month.
I was also recently invited to speak at the Arctic Circle Forum in Rome where Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, spoke about his nation’s new Arctic strategy. There may have been a time when Finns, who live and breathe the Arctic, might have shunned the idea of a Mediterranean nation claiming Arctic expertise. But that is certainly no longer the case.
NATO needs all hands on deck in the north — and I know how much Italy, with is long history of polar research and alpine forces, brings to the table.
Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine has disrupted Arctic co-operation frameworks and underscored the region’s growing strategic importance. Moscow is planning to invest heavily in its northern flank, expanding infrastructure along the Northern Sea Route and strengthening the Northern Fleet on the Kola Peninsula, home to many of Russia’s most important nuclear assets.
As Norwegian prime minister Jonas Støre has noted, those nuclear weapons are not aimed at Finland or Norway; they are aimed across the Atlantic.
At the same time, China increasingly views the Arctic as a long-term strategic........