Interview: Commander Blake McBride, Arctic Action Officer, US Navy
The Arctic is emerging as a region of increasing interest for the US Navy (USN), as rising sea levels and melting polar ice present new security concerns for a navy that is built primarily to operate in warmer tropical climates. A report from the US National Academy of Sciences (NAS), commissioned by the USN and released on 10 March, notes: "Summer sea ice in the Arctic is declining at an estimated rate of 10 per cent per decade or more, and Arctic Ocean sea lanes could be open as early as the summer of 2030." It further observes: "The lack of operating experience by naval surface and air forces in cold-weather environments has resulted in a generation of naval personnel unfamiliar with the demands of operating in far-north areas, both at sea and ashore." Growing concerns over increased international transit routes and disputes over mineral rights are driving the US to develop a requirements list for the Arctic in co-operation with other nations that border the region: Canada, Denmark, Norway and Russia[.]
Establishing a Polar Command would probably help.
