Arctic emerges as key battleground in NATO’s strategic competition
Speaking at a security forum in Sweden, Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), highlighted growing cooperation among Russia, China, Iran, North Korea, and other states. “We see this clearly in Ukraine, while President Trump pushes for a peaceful resolution to a horrible war, China continues to fund Putin’s war machine,” he said.
He added: “Iran continues to supply technology and weapons and North Korean combat troops remain in Russia on Ukraine's border. And of course, there’s a confluence between Russia, Iran and Venezuela and their dark fleet of oil tankers that is helping to fund the war in the Arctic.”
The so called “dark fleet,” also known as the shadow fleet, is made up of roughly 1,000 vessels that conceal their involvement in transporting sanctioned oil. In recent weeks, U.S. authorities have intercepted several tankers moving through Venezuelan waters in an effort to disrupt these operations and pressure Caracas’ interim government.
Grynkewich noted that similar patterns are emerging in the High North, where Russian and Chinese ships are increasingly conducting joint patrols. “Chinese icebreakers and research vessels are in Arctic waters, and their research is not for peaceful purposes, it's to gain a military advantage,” he said, adding that Russia continues to test advanced military systems in the Barents Sea.
Turning to NATO’s own posture, Grynkewich described the defense spending pledges made at the 2025 Hague Summit as “historic.” However, he cautioned that financial commitments alone are insufficient, urging allies to accelerate the delivery of weapons, ammunition, and equipment to strengthen collective military readiness.
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