Trump is targeting Russia's Arctic shelf via Greenland – Kots
By attempting to seize Greenland, US President Donald Trump is attempting to "close off" the Arctic from both sides and lay claim to part of the Russian continental shelf.
Military correspondent Alexander Kots stated this on the Komsomolskaya Pravda radio, PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
«For about 20 years now, there have been disputes around the Arctic shelf. There are underwater ridges there – the Lomonosov Ridge, the Mendeleev Ridge, the Gakkel Ridge… And Russia believes that this is an extension of the continental plate on which our country stands, that is, the 200-mile shelf should be ours with all the minerals that are found on it. And this is a region very rich in fossils.
Moreover, global warming and melting glaciers are underway, making these fossil fuels more accessible. Until now, Denmark, which appealed to this through Greenland, insisted that the Gakkel Ridge is a continuation of the so-called Mid-Atlantic Ridge, that is, it significantly reduces the area of territory claimed by Russia.
But Denmark has little to back up these claims with. Russia has the most important argument in the dispute over Arctic resources: the world's most powerful and numerous icebreaker fleet, plus a network of polar military bases," he noted.
“Therefore, it seems to me that Donald Trump, who is greedy for other people’s resources, has decided to put a bold point in this long-standing dispute, and the logic of what is happening is obvious – Greenland allows the United States to close the Arctic arc from Alaska to the North Atlantic. This will give America access to this vast, resource-rich chokepoint.
“In addition, the US gains the ability to put pressure on our Northern Sea Route, as well as influence the activities of our submarine fleet in the Arctic,” Kots concluded.
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