At the fifth annual gathering of the International Arctic Forum, hosted by St. Petersburg, Russia, on April 9–10, 2019, participants voiced two diametrically opposing opinions regarding the so-called Belkomur (Arkhangelsk–Syktyvkar–Kudymakar–Perm) strategic railway project in the Russian High North. Yury Trutnev, a deputy prime minister of... MORE

On July 1, a secretive Russian AS-31 (Project 10831) nuclear-powered submersible suffered a deadly onboard fire and explosion while operating underwater in the Barents Sea, close to the entrance to the Kola Bay (the Murmansk Fjord). Fourteen members of the AS-31 crew—including all senior officers... MORE

The submarine tragedy in the Barents Sea on July 1, 2019, was quite different from the Kursk catastrophe of August 2000. The explosion that destroyed the nuclear attack submarine Kursk nearly 20 years ago was the consequence of a decade of decay and degradation, and... MORE

The United States Department of Defense released its new Arctic Strategy in early June (Defense.gov, June 6), and Russia’s leading information outlets responded by “reminding” that, by 2020, Moscow is planning to deploy a complex multi-branch force “capable of reacting to existing threats and protecting... MORE

To carry out its grand strategy in the Arctic, Russia relies on eroding the positions of other regional players. Denmark, a fellow member of the Arctic Council, is seen by Moscow as a relatively easy target, since Copenhagen can only remain an official stakeholder as... MORE

Three developments since early June 2019 call attention to China’s unrelenting efforts to become the dominant player on the Northern Sea Route (NSR)—the increasingly ice-free Arctic waterway along Russia’s northern coast, and the main segment of the longer Northeastern Passage, linking Asia and Europe. First,... MORE

Russia’s Baltic Shipyard (St. Petersburg) held a grand ceremony, on May 25, to celebrate the launching of the nuclear-powered Project 22220 (LK-60Ya) icebreaker Ural (Geoenergetika.ru, May 27, 2019). Following the festivities, Russian Central Bank head Elvira Nabiullina stated that the event would be further commemorated... MORE

A joint venture led by Russia’s Novatek has chosen the French-American company TechnipFMC to spearhead its new Arctic LNG 2 liquefied natural gas project on the Gydan Peninsula, in northern Siberia. The same Western firm previously oversaw the work on Novatek’s first LNG facility on... MORE

In spring 2019, two large protest actions broke out in the Russian regions and attracted unusually close attention from the national media. Even as opposition activity in Moscow (see Commentaries, March 21) had finally been declining, loud demonstrations erupted in cities such as Arkhangelsk and... MORE

Speaking at the 11th Arctic Council Ministerial meeting in Rovaniemi, Finland, on May 7, US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo warned that the pattern of aggressive Chinese behavior in other regions may give important indications to how China will act in the Arctic (Rambler.ru, May... MORE