"The U.S. is losing the race against time in one of the least-known corners of the planet. The cumulative effect of climate change is now irreversible, and the amount of ice already lost-40 percent over the past forty years-has changed the Arctic. Melting ice has launched a global competition transforming a newly-accessible Arctic wilderness into an often contested frontier. Thanks to its 1,100 miles of Alaskan Arctic coastline, America is one of only a handful of coastal Arctic nations, along with Russia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and (just barely) Iceland. American citizens inhabit the Arctic; American corporations transact business there; and American scientists conduct research. So why is America so absent? Diplomat and professor of national security Mary Thompson-Jones argues that America faces stiff competition from two directions-Russia and China. Russia's Arctic dwarfs the U.S. in population, coastline, industry, and military commitment. Putin has created a new Arctic Command, four new brigade combat teams, fourteen new airfields, sixteen new deep-water ports, and boasts the world's largest fleet of forty icebreakers. China bought its first icebreaker from Ukraine, built a second on its own, and is now building a third that is nuclear-powered. Therest of the Arctic is under stress. Sweden, a historically neutral country, has become increasingly alarmed by Russian activities, and sought a close association with NATO. But America can improve its position by seizing new political, diplomatic, and economic openings. Warmer temperatures could soon make living north of 66 degrees north latitude the same as living at 60 degrees. These Arctic nations needs infrastructure to connect them to a globalized world. Here diplomacy, especially economic tradecraft, is the solution. While the book is by no means dismissive of the military dimension, it will take a diplomatic and military intervention for America to present a formidable Arctic presence"--
As climate change accelerates, the Arctic has become a frontline of global competition. Melting ice, rising temperatures, and swelling seas have made remote regions at once newly accessible and rife with new dangers. Vladimir Putins Russia has embarked on a substantial military buildup in the Arctic, and China has also turned its attention northward. The United States, however, has only recently begun to reestablish its Arctic presence after many years of waning influence.
America in the Arctic offers a timely and compelling case for why the United States must deepen its commitment to a region threatened by climate change and geopolitical rivalry. Mary Thompson-Jones surveys past and present U.S. relations with the Arctic lands: Canada, Iceland, Greenland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Russia. She traces the history of the U.S. presence in the far north from the purchase of Alaska through the Cold War, arguing that lessons from the past should inform Americas relationships with its Arctic neighbors today. At its best, U.S. Arctic policy balanced security interests with residents needs and international cooperation on environmental and regional issues. In recent years, many policymakers scrambling to reassert U.S. leadership have framed their goals solely in security terms. Thompson-Jones argues that climate change now poses the greatest challenge, calling for a new approach that is inclusive of all the Arctics inhabitants. Bringing together national security expertise and historical insight, this book charts a course for American Arctic policy in a warming world.
America in the Arctic offers a timely and compelling case for why the United States must deepen its commitment to a region threatened by climate change and geopolitical rivalry.
