In an article on Saturday, July 2, 2011, “Russia To Deploy Troops To Defend Interest In Arctic”, the Wall Street Journal discusses how two army brigades are being sent to the north to defend Russia’s interest in its arctic resources. Putin Thursday said that Russia will spend 33 billion to build a year round port in the Russian Arctic on the Yamal Peninsula. An underwater ridge from the Northern Siberian shores is thought to lead directly to the North Poke, and it is expected to have plenty of oil.
The problem is that Finland, Norway, and Sweden have also sent troops to defend competing claims. Canada and Denmark have done the same. Even worse, because of receding ice it is now possible to find more fishing grounds farther north. That hasn’t escaped the attention of these powers either.
Is this to be the scenario for a new World War III? It is easy to imagine that it could be so.