Pompeo to discuss Arctic issues with officials from Denmark and Greenland
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is set to discuss security issues in the Arctic with Danish and Greenlandic Foreign Ministers Jeppe Kofod and Steen Lynge, respectively, today in Copenhagen.
The meeting comes a month after the historic reopening of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, in June, as part of the White House’s recent efforts to expand the US presence in the Arctic in a bid to curtail Russian and Chinese influence in the region.
Russia has significantly increased its military presence in the Arctic Circle, while China’s presence in the Arctic has largely been through the launch of its “Polar Silk Road” plan to invest in natural resources and shipping routes throughout the region. The area’s changing landscape and seascape, a result of climate change, has triggered a scramble to unlock new economic opportunities and a race for trading routes.
As the opening of the Arctic to shipping would require new icebreakers to patrol sea‐ lanes and investment in new infrastructure to support Arctic operations, the US government is expected to acquire more icebreakers in the short-term. In the long-term, expect increased US strategic engagement in the Arctic similar to the unveiling of the Air Force’s first-ever Arctic Strategy, announced yesterday.
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