From The Diplomat - Flashpoints, June 19:
The Arctic – where polar, deep sea, and space intersect – offers a particularly revealing case for China’s ambitions in the “strategic new frontiers.”
Last year, as part of China’s 15th Arctic expedition, two of China’s manned submersibles, the Fendouzhe and Jiaolong, conducted what Chinese news agency Xinhua described as “joint underwater operations” or manned dives under the Arctic ice. This was the first time that China had done anything like this. For the purposes of these dives, China brought to the region two of its deep-sea research vessels, which acted as motherships for the submersibles. These submersibles then conducted more than 40 dives over a 56-day period in the Central Arctic Ocean, some together and some separately.
As we discussed in a longer brief on the topic, these tests were just the latest sign of the growing scope of China’s scientific activities in the Arctic. Many signs point toward China increasingly seeking, among other goals, to develop reliable means to operate, communicate, and navigate within the Arctic region, both below the surface and above it. The manned submersible experiments can be seen as just one important milestone to this end, reflecting China’s growing ambition and capability to expand its presence within its self-defined “strategic new frontiers.”
Towards the “Strategic New Frontiers”
Polar regions (meaning both the Arctic and Antarctica) and deep seas are both part of what in the Chinese political vocabulary is sometimes referred to as the “strategic new frontiers” (战略新疆域). These are strategically important regions or domains that are opening up for exploitation due to advances in technology, and toward which China is already envisioning the next phase of its economic expansion. In addition to polar and deep-sea regions, they typically also include space, cyberspace, and artificial intelligence.
While primarily valued due to their economic prospects, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) sees the new frontiers as potential future domains of “military struggle” between great powers. The PLA views recent technological advances in unmanned submersibles and undersea communications as opening the deep seas for military operations – perhaps even in a transformative way. The Arctic, meanwhile, is often defined in PLA assessments as a crossroads of aviation and maritime power projection – a “strategic commanding height” from which the whole northern hemisphere can be brought within strategic reach.
Overall, China views the strategic new frontiers as future theaters of great power competition, where it needs to preemptively establish a strong presence and secure its interests....
....MUCH MORE
For some reason bringing to mind Robert W. Service:
There are strange things done in the midnight sun
By the men who moil for gold;
The Arctic trails have their secret tales
That would make your blood run cold;
The Northern Lights have seen queer sights,
But the queerest they ever did see
Was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge
I cremated Sam McGee....
