The Arctic region is crucial to America's foreign policy, economic growth and national security and so is also an area of renewed focus for the Biden Administration, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a recent briefing.
“America is an Arctic nation, so we have a profound stake in the future of the region and its people. More than 50,000 Americans live in the Arctic; home to unique ecosystems and biodiversity," Blinken said in remarks on the U.S National Strategy for the Arctic Region. “The Arctic also possesses significant economic potential - from tourism to vast natural resources. And because we share the region with seven other nations, the Arctic is also crucial to America's foreign policy and national security.”
The new national strategy will build on four pillars: security, addressing climate change, sustainable economic development, and international cooperation, according to a State Department press release.
A State Department spokesperson said the United States wants a peaceful, prosperous, stable and cooperative Arctic region as reaffirmed in the National Strategy, with a focus on defense due to Russia’s “brutal and unprovoked war against Ukraine” raising tensions. The security pillar increases the U.S. presence in the Arctic region to deter threats against the U.S. homeland, the spokesperson said.
The strategy accounts for Increasing strategic competition, a White House fact sheet reported.
A partnership between Alaska, its communities, and the U.S. government will build resilience from the effects of climate change through the reduction of emissions from the Arctic. Economic development will get a boost from infrastructure investment in the region, which will improve access to services and support growth. To support the fourth pillar of international cooperation, a commitment has been made to sustain the Arctic Council and other institutions for Arctic cooperation.
Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R) said the updated 10-year strategy was underwhelming in detail but serves as an important message that the United States must advance Arctic priorities. The Biden administration’s strategy contains positive elements including an expansion of Arctic diplomacy, she said in a press release from her office. But she said it falls short on Arctic resources, giving little attention to domestic production of the vast resources in the Arctic.
“There is no mention of responsible oil and gas development to help offset Russia and ensure reliable, affordable, and cleaner energy supplies for our nation and the world.”
Fellow Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska said in his own press release that the strategy is an improvement from 2013, “but still lacks a level of detail and sober-minded seriousness that we need to contend with this new era of authoritarian aggression led by Russia’s dictator, Vladimir Putin, and China’s dictator, Xi Jinping.”
He was concerned about an “excessive focus on climate change” in a security strategy, saying it sent a troubling message, his release reported.
