Canada’s new Arctic foreign policy aims to counter emerging threats from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Russia by strengthening international partnerships and increasing the nation’s military presence.
Unveiled in December 2024, the strategy calls for Canada to open new consulates in Anchorage, Alaska, and Nuuk, Greenland, and to appoint an Arctic ambassador. The country will also acquire eight new icebreakers to patrol the region to upgrade the Canadian Coast Guard’s maritime domain awareness.
“Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has led us all to ask, ‘Who’s next?’ It is clear that Russia has no red lines. Its designs on the Arctic and its resources are well known,” Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said in announcing the policy. “What is new is that Russia is increasingly dependent on China because of its war in Ukraine. It is reversing its historic posture by opening its Arctic to China and this is fulfilling the longtime aim of China, which has declared itself a near-Arctic state.”
Joly noted that Russia has increased its aggressive military actions in the Arctic, including joint operations with the Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Liberation Army Navy. Disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks also have increased, and state actors have sought to buy land in remote northern communities to exert influence in the region, she said.
“We’re seeing more ships in the Arctic and they’re not only doing scientific research. All that is happening while Arctic Sea ice is melting, shorter maritime routes between the Indo-Pacific and Europe are opening. Competitors are seeing new opportunities to exploit natural resources in the Arctic,” she said.
The Arctic policy complements Canada’s updated defense policy released in April 2024 and builds on the Canada-United States North American Aerospace Defense Command’s modernization investments announced in 2022.
“Climate change is increasing access to Arctic resources and shipping lanes, enticing nations to the region and heightening competition. This evolving environment creates new security challenges,” Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said. “Canada’s Arctic Foreign Policy responds to these growing challenges with a focus on asserting our sovereignty in the North, while supporting prosperity for those living there.”
Nations with an Arctic presence are adapting strategies to ensure security in the region. In April 2024, the Nordic Defence Cooperation, a security agreement among Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, signed Vision 2030, which calls for strengthening collaboration and logistical support for military operations in the region.
In July 2024, the U.S. published its Arctic strategy and two months later appointed Mike Sfraga as its first ambassador-at-large for Arctic affairs.
“It’s clear Allies and Partners must consider the Arctic a dynamic, integrated security landscape, stretching from the Bering Sea to the Barents Sea to the Baltic Sea, with inherent connections to the Indo-Pacific, North Pacific, North Atlantic and Euro-Atlantic regions,” Sfraga said at the inaugural Anchorage Security and Defense Conference in November 2024. “It’s critical we strengthen this trans-Arctic alliance, which in turn strengthens the trans-Atlantic alliance.”
Sentry is a professional military magazine published by U.S. Strategic Command to provide a forum for national security personnel.
