Arctic policy of foreign states in 2010–2026

Abstract

As the strategic importance of the Arctic for developed and developing nations grows, the need to maintain security and stability in the region becomes increasingly pressing. Tectonic shifts in world politics and economics, Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, and development of new areas beyond the Arctic Circle have led to increased interest of many countries and businesses in the economic, transport, and logistics opportunities of the Arctic region due to its geographic location. Eight countries that have direct access to the Arctic Ocean as well as non-regional states have launched development programs in the Far North and the Arctic. The article analyzes and compares foreign policy strategies of the Northern European, North American, and Asian countries that have a strong interest in developing resources of the Arctic region. Their conceptual national documents, published in 2020–2025, identify key environmental, economic, geopolitical, and humanitarian challenges to Arctic development and ways to counter them. The article concludes that a common feature of the Arctic strategies of all stakeholders is their multifaceted nature and a readiness to develop the region's natural resources in cooperation with other states on both multilateral and bilateral bases (notably, along the Canada–U.S. and Russia–China axes). However, interstate cooperation in the Arctic is hindered by sanctions imposed on Russia by the West, as well as by the overall politicization of Arctic development and the region’s growing militarization.