Wake up with the Washington Examiner: A battle for Arctic supremacy and what Biden can do before leaving – Washington Examiner

Max ThornberryDecember 17, 2024

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The article discusses the ⁤geopolitical tension in the Arctic as Russia seeks ‍to assert its power by modernizing military bases and enhancing ⁣nuclear capabilities in response to NATO. Russia’s advancements are ‌characterized⁣ by a notable emphasis on‍ their ‍nuclear forces in the Arctic, which have been declared crucial for national security amidst heightened tensions with NATO. The ‌piece ⁣highlights that China, although not directly linked to the Arctic, has ‌positioned itself as a “near-Arctic” state, primarily using ⁣climate change as a pretext to establish a presence through partnerships ‍with⁤ Russia.

the article also touches on U.S. responses⁢ to‍ these developments, emphasizing ⁣commitments to prevent a security vacuum, such as investing in icebreakers and ensuring ‍rapid troop‌ deployments ‍in the region. It notes that President Biden, after an extended period of relative political absence, is under increasing pressure from Democrats to take meaningful⁣ actions before the end of his term. This includes renewed attempts at student ⁣loan forgiveness, and using executive powers to enact broad policy changes, especially as the political landscape shifts with Trump’s anticipated return.

the article encapsulates the complexities of Arctic diplomacy, military posturing by⁣ Russia and China, and domestic political maneuvering within the United states as the Biden administration‌ approaches its conclusion.

Wake up with the Washington Examiner: A battle for Arctic supremacy and what Biden can do before leaving

Nuclear winter

Russia is moving through the Arctic at less than a glacial pace to establish itself as a power player in the area. It has raced to modernize Soviet-era bases and stock the region with its nuclear forces to project its power and make sure the United States and NATO understand that it plans to challenge “those who seek to escalate tensions in the region.”

This week, the Washington Examiner is taking a deep dive into the ways in which Russia and China are trying to maneuver themselves to show they are prepared to challenge the U.S. for the title of the premier world power. Their space programs are forcing the U.S. to bring the future into the present.

This morning, Foreign Affairs Reporter Timothy Nerozzi looks at what is happening in the Arctic, a frozen wasteland that makes encroachment difficult and footholds vital as outposts provide strategic launching points all over the world.

“The Russian military is investing heavily in its Arctic region nuclear capabilities — infrastructure it believes is ‘critical’ for sustained national security amid tense coexistence with its North Atlantic Treaty Organization neighbors,” Timothy wrote.

Russia is making noise about what kind of preparations it has made to bolster its presence, including Adm. Aleksander Moiseyev, commander in chief of the Russian navy, telling Russia’s 14th International Forum in St. Petersburg that its nuclear forces are on display.

“In the Arctic, as well as in the eastern part of our country — Kamchatka, which technically does not fall into the Arctic zone — we have a strategic nuclear forces component,” Moiseyev said. “This is specifically the maritime component, where our strategic submarines are based. Their condition and readiness, I emphasize, are at the highest level. I say this as a professional who has devoted many years of service to these forces.”

Tagging along with the buildup is China. Though it doesn’t have a strong claim to be a country that has any possible ties to the region 900 miles away, it declared itself a “near-Arctic” state in 2018 — “an invented self-designation with no legal standing,” Timothy wrote.

China has pointed to climate change as the ostensible reason for them to be involved in the region, as well as expanding its “Belt and Road” initiative by establishing a “Polar Silk Road.”

“Without Arctic infrastructure of its own, China relies on cooperation with its Russian allies for access to the region,” Timothy wrote. “The two nations regularly share ports, personnel, and infrastructure.”

While the U.S. cannot prevent Russia and China from building up capabilities in the region, it has responded by ensuring there isn’t a power vacuum for the nations to fill.

A 2024 Arctic strategy document from June addressed responding to Russia’s buildup specifically. The U.S. is also investing in icebreakers and making sure it can deploy and house troops in the Arctic on short notice if necessary.

The U.S. Coast Guard also patrols the region, where it has spotted the Russian Border Guard and Chinese Coast Guard deploying joint patrols.

Click here to read more about the new cold war playing out in the Arctic Circle.

Biden going to work

President Joe Biden doesn’t have much time left in office. He has been absent for most of the last five months since he dropped his reelection bid and Vice President Kamala Harris sped out of the gates only to crash into President-elect Donald Trump.

It has looked as though Biden wasn’t doing much to keep pulling the strings of government. He regularly decamped to Rehoboth Beach and made few public appearances. That started to change after the election. The president publicly welcomed Trump to the White House, and he has made a handful of speeches to remind voters about his economic legacy — never mind the fact voters overwhelmingly said they wanted Trump back because they were unhappy with the state of the economy.

After Biden offered his son a sweeping pardon that covered all crimes alleged, charged, convicted, and possible over a 10-year period, Democrats are wondering if he might be roused to do a little bit more for them before he’s ushered off the national stage one more time.

“Amid mounting pressure on Biden from Democrats to protect illegal immigrants from Trump’s mass deportations, end mass federal prison incarceration, and even certify the Equal Rights Amendment, his absenteeism could be coming to an end during the last month of Biden’s administration, at least according to a new memo being circulated by the White House,” White House Reporter Naomi Lim wrote for us this morning.

Democrats figure that as his exit draws near, the president has less to lose politically and can make bold moves to put wins on the board for his party without worrying about suffering the ill will of anyone who doesn’t like the decisions.

At the top of the list is a request that Biden try, yet again, to execute sweeping student loan forgiveness. The campaign promise from 2019 turned into a stinging rebuke by the Supreme Court and a winding legal challenge for the Biden administration.

The administration has “canceled” debt for roughly 5 million borrowers, but it has had to fight with Republicans for every inch, and the total is far less than the blanket promise Biden made on the campaign trail.

Now, Democrats are asking him to try again before Trump “slams the door shut on borrowers.”

There is also pressure on Biden to keep using his pardon power. He flexed it just after Thanksgiving to shield his son and then made history last week when he commuted the sentences of roughly 1,500 people at once — the most a president has ever done in a single day.

Biden hasn’t ruled out plans to offer preemptive pardons for Trump foes such as Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and former Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, who have said they aren’t interested in being pardoned as they don’t think they have committed any crimes, but there are other Democrats and Trump skeptics who might be happy to have a legal shield between them and the incoming administration.

Click here to read what else Democrats are hoping Biden will do in his final days as president.