The U.S. Army released a new strategy document yesterday, titled “Regaining Arctic Dominance.” It “lays out how the Army will generate, train, organize and equip our forces to partner with Arctic allies and secure our national interests and maintain regional stability,” reports the Army announcement. “The release of this strategy is timely, especially given increasing levels of great power competitor activities in the Arctic region,” the announcement continues. “Operating in the Arctic allows the Army to powerfully project our forces to enhance our ability to respond in competition, crisis and/or conflict.” https://api.army.mil/e2/c/downloads/2021/03/15/9944046e/regaining-arctic-dominance-us-army-in-the-arctic-19-january-2021-unclassified.pdf
Stars & Stripes reported that as part of the strategy, the Army will establish a new two-star headquarters in Alaska to lead combat brigades that are specially trained and equipped to operate more effectively in the region. The document claims that the Arctic has the potential to become a contested space where America’s “adversaries” — they name Russia and China — seek to use military and economic power to gain and maintain access to the region at the expense of U.S. interests.