Russia steps up Arctic military presence

With climate change warming up regions of the arctic and making resources more accessible, Russia has stepped up it's military presence in the far north.

The Russian military announced that by 2020, the Arctic north with be its main resource base, which has caused concern amongst other nations that have sovereignty claims to the sparsely populated region. The document claims that the majority of its domestic oil and gas will come from the area that is currently covered by permafrost, as climate change is expected to make the previously trapped resources - estimated to contain about 90 billion barrels of oil - much easier to extract. However, this claim to the resources comes with an increased military presence.

In order to protect its assets, Moscow says one of its main goals will be the establishment of troops "capable of ensuring military security" in the region.

This news only furthers the ongoing dispute between the five nations that share the arctic coastline. In 2007, Canada reasserted it's claim to much of the Arctic ocean islands with a three-day trip up north from Prime Minister Stephen Harper. During that visit, which came only days after a Russian sub planted its flag on the seabed underneath the North Pole, there was talk of increasing the breadth of the country's northernmost national park, Quttinirpaaq National Park on Ellesmere Island. Canada has already had talks of increasing it's military presence in the far north, particularly after a 2005 visit to an island claimed by both Denmark and Canada from defense minister Bill Graham, and Denmark's sending of naval vessels to the island in 2002 and 2003. The United States and Canada have also had a longstanding dispute over the usage of the Northwest passage, which the US claims is international waters but Canada maintains is sovereign. Much - if not all - of the disputes between these nations focuses on the usage of resources, which has been estimated to be as high as 25% of untapped oil, natural gas, and other commodities. As the climate continually warms the area, the arguments and land-claims are likely to get more intense.