The Arctic as a potential space for Great Power Competition

At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, the Arctic Ocean experienced a short reduction in both the extent and the amount of sea ice. These events, triggered by a global rise in temperature, have opened the door to more active use of new sea shipping routes and the possibilities of extraction of natural resources from deposits previously inaccessible. Such changes led to an increase in the activity of states both belonging to the Arctic region and outside it. The result of these processes was a gradual increase in rivalry between the key actors in the Arctic region. The author analyzes how the state of relations between the great powers affects the Arctic region. Using the example of relations between US and Russia, which are key in the Arctic, it is shown that, despite the growing rivalry between the two states, they least of all affect the Russian-American relations in this region. Against this background, there is growing and interesting another great power to this region - the PRC. In contrast to the Russian Federation and the United States, China uses a non-confrontational path in its activities in the Arctic region, advocates the preservation of peace and stability in it. As a result, the rivalry of states in the northern latitudes can be called a semblance of a Cold War on a regional scale. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd