US Nuclear Submarine Conducts Icebreaking Training Near Russian Arctic Base... Fierce Competition for Arctic Ocean Control

[Image source= US Navy Twitter/https://twitter.com/USNavy]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The U.S. Navy has released photos and videos showing a nuclear submarine conducting icebreaking training near a Russian Arctic naval base. The United States and Russia are engaged in fierce competition for control over the Arctic Ocean as global warming melts the ice and reopens the old Arctic routes.

According to Russia's RIA Novosti news agency, on the 10th (local time), the U.S. Navy shared photos and videos on social networking services (SNS) such as Twitter and YouTube showing nuclear submarines conducting icebreaking training near the Franz Josef Islands in the Arctic Ocean. The footage showed scenes of a nuclear submarine breaking through ice and surfacing. This area is known to be close to Russia's Arctic naval base.

The nuclear submarines involved in this icebreaking training were strategic weapons, including the U.S. Los Angeles-class nuclear-powered submarines Connecticut (SSN-22) and Toledo (SSN-769). Recently, as Russia has been expanding its naval bases in the Arctic Ocean to enhance military operational capabilities, the U.S. Navy has also increased training using strategic weapons such as nuclear submarines.

The Arctic Ocean region has seen a sharp decline in ice due to global warming, restoring much of the Arctic sea routes used in the 18th century. With the potential for massive oil and natural resource exploration in this area, competition for control between the U.S. and Russia is intensifying. Russia is focusing all efforts on strengthening control over the Arctic Ocean by significantly expanding infrastructure at four Arctic airports by 2024 and constructing additional icebreakers.

Amid the competition between the U.S. and Russia, China is also planning to enter the Arctic region. In January 2018, China released a white paper on Arctic policy, announcing plans to build a "Polar Silk Road" through the development and utilization of Arctic routes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.