Why Nato needs to be prepared for an Arctic showdown

Whether it wants to admit it or not, the UK is at war with Russia, and the Arctic is one arena that sees Britain lacking in assets.

That is the opinion of Professor Klaus Dodds from Royal Holloway University, who spoke to BFBS Forces News about how the vast expanse once considered isolated and inaccessible is finding itself a hotspot for global competition.

Climate change has reshaped the Arctic's icy borders and geopolitical tensions have risen, and while the UK is not an Arctic state, it does have skin in the game.

#bfbsforcesnews #forcesnews #arctic #nato #military #uk #russia

[Hauser-ranmsansame]

I had no idea that tensions and grey zone conflicts in the Arctic had risen to this extent. Russia and China are a threat to my home country, Japan. Grey zone situations have already occurred, especially on remote islands and in the seas with China. Japan needs to strengthen its military ties not only with the United States, but also with the United Kingdom. This will help protect freedom and democracy around the world.

[VanderlyndenJengold]

Thing is, I was saying all this stuff when the previous govt were cutting UK defence in every sector from 2010 on. Their supporters weren't bothered in the slightest.

[unreal]

Nato doesn't even want to de escalate a problem

[norsenomad]

Oh, yes, these "accidents", or hybrid warfare activities, are actually happening, already.
Here's a brief report from 🇧🇻 North Norway:
JAMMING - we have a north-east border to Russia, and they are constantly making problems. One example: RF jamming, including GPS frequencies. This has increased, and in 2020 The Norwegian Communications Authority (NKOM) registered multiple jamming activities by Russia using a wide frequency band over Norwegian land, sea, and in our air space for 6 days, in 2020 they jammed for 18 days, in 2022 for 122 days, and in 2023 for 294 out of 365 days (yes, about 300 days of the year!) in North Norway. Logged data shows a clear and huge increase in jamming particularly over Finnmark county and Norwegian fishing areas of The Barents Sea. Russia's illegal jamming is making radio communications difficult, and it is dangerous for navigation in civil air traffic, particularly for SAR helicopters and air ambulances during emergencies.
SABOTAGE - we have encountered Russian sabotage on Norway's communication cables. We've counted three, so far, including (1) On 3 April 2021, suddenly 4.3 km of The Norwegian Polar Institute's research subsea-cable outside Helgeland Norway was suddenly cut and dragged away (investigations found evidence in the official AIS database, transmitter trace logs with exact coordinates of Russian ships crossing the cables several times at each incident), (2) On 7 January 2022, one of the two subsea fiber communications cables between Svalbard and mainland Norway, and (3) On 13 September 2024, a land-based sensor cable cut with cable-cutter on top of the mountain above Space Norway spaceport base on Andøya, the night before a large international RF experiment at the base.

We can add other Russian "research vessel" activities of various sorts... And there's probably a lot more "accidents" I haven't noticed, as well.
Regards from Norway.

[nimal]

Say the facts as they are and let people decide what they need to know. It’s exhausting dealing with the constant lies from the media and politicians—trust in their words is completely broken.

[gadgetgus]

⚠️ Team BFBS 👊🏼
Unfortunately, there are many who are still naive to these facts...
A future 'hot spot' for sure!
Thanks for updating us,
Cheers, Gus 🍻

[gerardflynn]

Arctic is a good place for training.
Because Antarctica is too damn cold.

[hmm]

US will figure out its priority, which is to deter China in the Pacific.
Euro, while unfortunately is too late to deter a conflict, should focus on the situation in Ukraine. Resource is already stretching thin, I don't know how opening a new frontier in remote and unfamiliar territory can be of any help. Russian has significantly more experience and geo advantage in the Arctic region.

[GreptonLawrence]

They must, if china consider it's a close article state then why not england.

[danpetrescu]

Northern flank . what IF retreat to south . then don't neat a flank

[j.dunlop]

The Russians built a Nuclear power station no a barge, that can be towed around the Artic!😮

[LeeTillbury]

A mass extinction is inevitable I think 😢

[KOBINA_]

Their plans, and wish will not materialize, continue crying always.

[Thuon_]

Russia is advantaged and borders the said region how is it hard for the fellow expansionists to comprehend it😏. Russia has been exploring the arctic since the Soviet times and you want to wage war with them because they have the upper hand 😏.

[bair]

Арктика наша! Действительно, вам там делать нечего!

[trsu]

I wrote to my MP years ago to ask about protecting our best future energy supply - offshore wind. The future is utterly dependent on *nobody* exhuming fossil carbon any more, so renewable potential is future wealth/status. Check the 'global wind atlas': UK has "enough wind to power Europe", we're in a great place to be living on a trade surplus in a post-fossils world. There is a risk though, called "Global Stilling" which is the wind dropping if the poles are no longer frozen: a prospect if we don't stop exhuming fossil carbon and we don't fix the harm already done. The UK is already at war with countries, organisations, and people who would ruin the Arctic: if we lose, we are becalmed in the worst way ever.

[edwardmclaughlin]

Looking at your map, it seems fairly natural and in order, that Russia should be so active in the Arctic. Millions of square miles of Russian territory lies within the Arctic circle, and its entire northern shoreline meets the Arctic Ocean. So what that the Arctic and the North Atlantic are next to each other? Russia makes no claim to have an interest in the North Atlantic, beyond its right to traverse international shipping routes?

"We are, dare I say it, at war with Russia..." Well why? Why on earth are we in any way involved in NATO's thrust eastward, encroaching on Russia's borders and challenging their security? The Western narrative has it that Russia is the aggressor, but just imagine how the US would react if Russia were to set-up military bases in Mexico, with missiles sited within minutes of US strategic assets? How would that be treated?

What gives the UK the right to regard the far north 'as our backyard', while China is regarded here as pushing its nose in by its use of Arctic shipping routes, and in working with Russia to gain access to resources?

The way that climate change is over-stated here is also something of a giveaway. The truth is that the climate is not changing very much at all at either pole.

Finally, since you used a short clip of footage from what looks like the Nordstream pipeline destruction, it seems appropriate to ask the question: who did that then?

[bahacho]

The Russian position is clear, England is a small island that too small for Russia to even consider an opponent. The artic is in Russia, any country that want to get eraced should temper.

[gorankovacevic]

I bet Brits blew up the nord stream!? 😂

[GreptonLawrence]

All the nato states must invest in the artic as well.