US Secretary of State: Russia uses climate change to control the Arctic
© RIA Novosti. Natalya Seliverstova

US Secretary of State: Russia uses climate change to control the Arctic

Speaking in Annapolis, Maryland, US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said that climate change can “create new theaters of conflict.” In particular, he noted that, due to the Arctic warming, the Northern Sea Route is becoming navigable for a longer period of time in a year.

“Russia is exploiting this change to try to exert control over new spaces.  It is modernizing its bases in the Arctic and building new ones, including one just 300 miles from Alaska,” the Secretary of State said and added that China is also “increasing its presence in the Arctic.”

Climate change is a priority issue for the North Atlantic Alliance as well, according to the leader of US diplomacy.

“At NATO, for example, there is consensus that we need to adapt our military readiness for the inevitability of climate change and reduce the reliance of the Allies’ forces on fossil fuels, which is both a vulnerability and a major source of pollution,” he stressed. 

Notably, back in March 2021, Nikolai Korchunov, Russian Ambassador-at-Large and Russia’s Senior Arctic Official to the Arctic Council, announced that Russia had taken all necessary action to ensure security in the Arctic in view of NATO’s growing interest in the region. Korchunov said that the current developments validated the decisions made earlier with respect to preserving the Arctic as a territory of peace, low tension, sustainable development and cooperation.