MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to build a unified network of naval facilities in the Arctic. The bases will host advanced warships and submarines, Putin said. The project is part of Moscow's plan to boost the protection of the nation's interests and borders.
"We need to strengthen our military infrastructure. In particular, to create in our part of the Arctic a unified network of naval facilities for new-generation ships and submarines," the president said at a meeting of Russia's Security Council.
Last December, Putin ordered the military to increase its presence in the Artic and to complete the development of new military infrastructure in the region in 2014. Then in February 2014, Moscow announced the creation of the Northern Fleet-Unified Strategic Command (Severny Flot-Obedinyonnoye Strategicheskoye Komandovaniye, SF-OSK). The new command will comprise elements from the Northern Fleet, Arctic warfare brigades, and from air force and air defense units, including some 200 motorized infantry troops.
The MoD also plans to reopen several airfields and ports on the New Siberian Islands and the Franz Josef Land archipelago, as well as at least seven airstrips on the continental part of the Arctic Circle.
Moscow is also constructing an early warning missile radar in Russia's extreme north.
Meanwhile, the coast guard division of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) will deploy four new warships to protect the nation's Arctic zone by 2020. Eleven border protection facilities are also expected to be built in the Arctic, while automated surveillance systems are to be deployed in the area as part of the Russian Federation State Border Protection program for 2012-2020.
As the region becomes more accessible in the future, Russian interests in the Arctic are expected to grow.
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