The Frozen Frontier: United States Arctic Strategy in a Shifting Economic Landscape

Abstract

The Arctic region has rapidly evolved into a focal point of 21st-century geopolitical competition, emerging as a critical arena for economic opportunity and global power projection due to its vast resource reserves, emerging trade routes, and increasing strategic relevance. This paper examines the dynamics of modern Arctic geopolitics, analyzing the growing involvement of major powers—namely, the United States, Russia, and China—with a particular focus on the United States' policy and expansion in the region. In contrast to Russia's militarized approach and China's economic engagement, the United States is shown to possess relatively limited capabilities in the region, hindered by an underdeveloped icebreaker fleet, infrastructure gaps, and diplomatic challenges arising from its increasingly isolationist posture. This analysis calls for a measured but assertive approach to Arctic expansion, grounded in enhanced polar capabilities, infrastructure investment, and multilateral cooperation to balance geopolitical risks. The paper concludes that such expansion is not only necessary to safeguard American strategic interests but is also key to counterbalancing adversarial advances and ensuring long-term energy security and access to trade routes, driving both economic growth and regional stability. The paper contends that America's long-term economic and geopolitical success in the Arctic rests upon decisive action, resilient infrastructure development, and the careful management of alliance dynamics and collective defense in the region.