Understanding Russia’s Arctic Security Strategies

Russia’s security policy in the Arctic is a vexed question both in the policy-oriented and academic literature. ‘Russian expansionism in the Arctic’, ‘Russian military build-up in the Far North’, the ‘New Cold War’ and the ‘end of Arctic exceptionalism’ are common statements in Western publications. This school often portrays the Arctic as a zone of potential conflict because of unresolved maritime boundary and continental shelf issues, control over sea routes and the region’s abundant natural resources, as well as because of the spill-over effect of several international crises (Ukraine, Syria).