Territories held by countries in the Arctic zone
This map shows the territories countries hold in the Arctic, a region now at the centre of economic and geopolitical competition between the United States, Russia and China.
This map shows the territories that countries hold in the Arctic zone. It is no accident that US President Trump speaks of eventually bringing Canada and Greenland into the United States, which would give it control over half of the Arctic zone.
Control of the Arctic is also control of the transport corridors opening up there as the glaciers melt. Bringing Greenland into the United States would allow it to control not only the Arctic but the Atlantic as well, on a geopolitical scale.
Canada and Greenland, and the Arctic zones in general, are also rich in natural resources. Advances in new technology, including space technology, will make it possible to exploit those minerals in the Arctic efficiently in the future.
The Arctic is thus becoming an arena of serious economic and geopolitical competition between the United States, Russia and China. China, too, is trying to wedge its way into the Arctic race.