Heather Conley writes in Foreign Affairs about the need to look north as America assesses security threats.
Six months ago, the United States provoked a transatlantic crisis over Greenland. The White House announced in early January that “acquiring Greenland is a national security priority of the United States” and that the options U.S. President Donald Trump was considering in pursuit of this goal included “utilizing the U.S. military.” …
… A few days later, Trump withdrew his threat to take Greenland by force, defusing the immediate crisis. But the episode—together with Trump’s repeated talk of incorporating Canada as “the 51st state”—has spurred NATO allies in the Arctic region to step up their security activities. …
… U.S. Arctic policy is undergoing a seismic shift, too. Since the end of the Cold War, American defense planners have treated the Arctic as a low priority, and programs to build icebreakers, deep-water ports, satellites, drones, and military installations have been severely delayed. The problems these delays created were obvious. In 2015, the United States did not have ships that could track Chinese naval vessels in the Bering Sea, off the coast of Alaska, and had to rely on air surveillance instead. In 2024, U.S. forces struggled to quickly reach Alaska’s remote Shemya Island after 15 Russian warships fired missiles as part of a maritime exercise. But now, the region may finally be getting the funding and attention it deserves. The Trump administration’s strategy documents include proposals to integrate the Arctic into a hemisphere-wide homeland defense plan. Already, Congress has funded the construction of up to three heavy icebreakers and 11 medium icebreakers, and it is beginning to appropriate funds to improve military infrastructure along the Alaskan coast. …
… But fully securing the United States’ northern frontline will also require that Washington cooperate much more closely with its Arctic allies.
