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Ottawa says its focus on the Arctic comes after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “has shaken the foundations” of international cooperation in the northern region.
Dec. 6, 2024Updated 11:37 a.m. ET
Citing growing interest by China and Russia in the Arctic as global warming makes the region more accessible, Canada on Friday said it would focus on building stronger alliances with other nations in the region, particularly the United States.
“For many years, Canada has aimed to manage the Arctic and northern regions cooperatively with other states as a zone of low tension,” according to a statement by the Canadian government.
But more recent developments, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, had “shaken the foundations of international cooperation in the Arctic,” the statement said.
Canada has long debated how best to assert control over its vast but very sparsely populated Arctic.
The policy statement calls climate change “the overarching threat” to that control. Warmer temperatures and thinning ice make it increasingly likely that it will soon be possible in the summers for ships to regularly travel from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean by way of an Arctic route known as the Northwest Passage.
Canada’s government said the country was committed to increasing military spending in the Arctic, including a 5 billion Canadian dollar, or $3.6 billion, upgrade of defense systems used by the North American Aerospace Defense Command — a joint operation of the two countries.
