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The Arctic policy ecosytem from the perspective of the US executive branch
The Arctic is hot these days, and it’s not just the climate. The United States in particular has accelerated its policy activities as we covered in a recent timeline analysis. A mere week after we published that article came the announcement by the Department of Defense that it is establishing an Arctic Strategy and Resilience Office, with…
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2022 National Security Strategy released with strong emphasis on Arctic region
The National Security Strategy is a report mandated by Section 603 of the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-433). The report is due every four years, but in reality the deadline is treated in a somewhat elastic manner. Previous reports were released in 1987-88, 1990-91, 1993-2000, 2002, 2006, 2010, 2015, and 2017.…
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A Timeline of US Arctic security policy
During the Obama and Trump administrations there was concern in some quarters about a stagnation of US Arctic policy, even as other nations were stepping up their interest and activities in the region – including a doubling in 2013 of the number of Arctic Council observer states that included China. Fast-forward just a few years and the situation…
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White House releases 2022 National Strategy for the Arctic region
Hot of the press, the White House has released its 2022 National Strategy for the Arctic Region. The fifteen-page strategy outlines four pillars: Work on the pillars will be guided by five principles A brief fact sheet was also provided which explicitly acknowledged increased competition with Russia and China in the region: “This strategy, an update of its 2013 predecessor,…
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Alaska steps up support of US Arctic policy
Alaska was famously described by Brig. Gen. Billy Mitchell in 1935 as “The most strategic place on earth.” Alaska-based assets have been particularly active lately in supporting the Arctic policy of the United States. Last month the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies held its official ribbon-cutting ceremony to become the newest Department of Defense regional center. Alaskan Command on…
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Biden elevates Arctic policy with Ambassador-at-Large
On August 26, 2022, President Biden moved Arctic policy higher on the national agenda with the announcement of a new ambassador-at-large position for the Arctic region: “The Ambassador-at-Large for the Arctic Region will advance U.S. policy in the Arctic, engage with counterparts in Arctic and non-Arctic nations as well as Indigenous groups, and work closely with domestic…
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Murkowski to introduce bill aimed at boosting US influence in the Arctic
August 3, 2022 – Alaska Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski introduced a “comprehensive Arctic bill [focused] on national security, research, shipping, and trade… It requires reports on eliminating Russia’s monopoly on Arctic shipping and establishing a permanent U.S. maritime presence in the Arctic. It calls for investments in deepwater Arctic ports and improves coordination among federal agencies on Arctic…
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A US security strategy for the Arctic
A U.S. Security Strategy for the Arctic was posted to War on the Rocks by David Auerswald on May 27, 2021. Auerswald is a professor of security studies at the U.S. National War College in Washington, DC. In the article Auerswald details the geopolitical competition in the Arctic from Russia and China, the shortcomings of the current patchwork US approach,…
