Russia To Annex The Arctic

by JASmius



Will Alaska be next?:

Russia has submitted its bid for vast territories in the Arctic to the United Nations, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

The ministry said in a statement that Russia is claiming 1.2 million square kilometers (over 463,000 square miles) of Arctic sea shelf extending more than three hundred fifty nautical miles (about six hundred fifty kilometers) from the shore.

Russia, the U.S., Canada, Denmark and Norway have all been trying to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic, which is believed to hold up to a quarter of the planet’s undiscovered oil and gas....

Russia was the first to submit its claim in 2002, but the U.N. sent it back for lack of evidence.

Indicating that Moscow didn't have the military wherewithall at the time to simply take what they wanted.  Given Vladimir Putin's burgeoning dreams of restoring the Evil Empire, this "bid" might be a lot more "muscular".

To the extent that international law has any actual relevance to this power play, the "bid" in question may have some....problems:

The current understanding of who “owns” the Arctic basin is laid out by the U.N. International Seabed Authority, and it’s divided up between the United States, (via Alaska) Canada, Russia, Norway and Denmark. (Because of their claim on Greenland) But it’s also understood that the range of continental shelf that each nation can lay claim to is limited to two hundred nautical miles from the shore. Everything beyond those limits is considered to be “the high seas” under international law and part of the “heritage of all mankind.” That definition becomes even more tricky when you consider that the “shore” can include numerous, tiny, disputed islands....

The Russian claim extends almost twice as far as it should based on the two hundred mile limit and they’ve been up to a number of other hijinks in recent years which seem intended to increase their muscle in the polar regions. (This includes rebuilding defunct, Soviet era bases on their northern coast.)

Remember how, during the Cold War, anyplace that the Red Army showed up, they never left?  Once the USSR occupied a piece of territory, it was Soviet territory forever?  I wouldn't be surprised is Czar Vlad is already doing the same with the Arctic seabed.  Because once the Russians control it, how will Canada, Norway, and/or Denmark ever evict them?

Why did I not mention the United States?  Because Obama will side with Putin's bid, since he has no interest in "contributing to global warming" by tapping the Arctic's massive fossil fuel resources anyway, and that would be another opportunity to "improve relations with Moscow".  It's probably the only reason that Vlad is bothering with it.

That, and a secret side "deal" ceding back Alaska, along with an official apology for William Seward's "aggression".