The Arctic region has long been considered a place of low tension, partially isolated from great power struggle. However, with the melting of the ice caps, and the rise in geopolitical tensions, the Arctic region has become an increasingly politicised area.
With the receding ice, accessibility to the North Sea is increasing, something that have been perceived as a potential threat from the Russian government. In an effort to deal with this new border control challenge, Russia have strengthened its military presence in the area, enhanced northern fleets technology, and improved capability to perform in the Arctic environment.
How should western military and policy makers deal with the Russian military expansion in the Arctic region, and what should their long-term strategy for the area be?
To discuss these questions, Stockholm Free World Forum hosted a lunch seminar on Friday September 20th, with Mathieu Boulègue, Research Fellow at the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House, and Niklas Granholm, Deputy Director of studies at the Swedish Defence Research Agency, FOI. The seminar was moderated by Oscar Jonsson, director of SFWF.
Read Mathieu Boulègue´s research paper here.
Hear Mathieu Boulègue on Russian military posture in the Arctic here.
Hear Niklas Granholm discussing the implications of Russian military posture in the Arctic here.
Hear the discussion with Boulegue, Granholm and Jonsson on Russian military posture in the Arctic here.
Mathieu Boulègue is a Research Fellow at the Russia and Eurasia Programme at Chatham House – The Royal Institute of International Affairs. Before joining Chatham House, Mathieu was a partner at the risk management and strategic research consultancy AESMA, where he worked as director of Eurasian affairs. In his research, Mathieu focuses on Eurasian security and defence issues as well as on Russia’s domestic and foreign policy, and notably in the Arctic
Niklas Granholm is Deputy Director of studies at the Swedish Defence Research Agency, FOI, currently at the department for security policy. During secondments to the Swedish Foreign- and Defence Ministries he worked with European defence and security related issues. He is a fellow of the Royal Swedish Society for Naval Sciences (KÖMS), the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (KkrVA) and an Associate Fellow of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in London.