Global North

Aerial view of a braided gravel outwash plain formed by glacial meltwater on the northeast coast of Baffin Island, Nunavut, in the Canadian Arctic. Photo by Mike Beauregard CC BY).

A Free Arctic? A Timely but Long-Resisted Debate, Part II

In this second part of the two-part series, Barry Scott Zellen reassesses debates over Greenland’s future, Arctic sovereignty, NATO strategy, and competing interpretations of decolonization, security, and Indigenous political agency.

By

Barry Scott Zellen

17 Min Read

A Free Arctic? A Timely but Long-Resisted Debate, Part I

Arctic sea ice and frozen coastal cliffs under the midnight glow of the northern horizon. Photo by Tomsk (CC BY).

17 Min Read

The Arctic Front of the Tri-Axis Challenge

A Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker navigates Arctic sea ice, enabling year-round access to the Northern Sea Route and reinforcing the strategic and economic reach of emerging Tri-Axis connectivity.

25 Min Read

Northeast Asia’s “Tri-Axis” Challenge and the Arctic’s Future

Tri-axis pressures converge at the Arctic frontier, where emerging power alignments meet critical maritime routes (public domain).

22 Min Read

After Venezuela: Trump Advances on Greenland

In the context of Greenland U.S. conflict, Arctic-capable forces participate in cold-weather training exercises focused on mobility and logistics. Photo by The National Guard (CC BY).

22 Min Read

Putin’s Ainu Recognition: Is Hokkaido Russia’s Next Target?

Satellite view of Russia’s Far Eastern Pacific frontier, a strategic launch point toward the Kuril Islands and northern Japan (NASA). Ainu.

15 Min Read

Hokkaido and the Foundations of Japan’s Arctic Influence

Maoka (now Kholmsk), a Japanese port city in Karafuto (southern Sakhalin) during World War II, reflecting Japan’s historical projection of power north of Hokkaido.

14 Min Read

The Rise, Fall and Re-emergence of Japan as an Arctic Power

Imperial Japanese map of the North Pacific and sub-Arctic regions, depicting Hokkaido, Sakhalin (Karafuto), the Kuril Islands and the western Aleutians. The cartography illustrates Japan’s historical projection as an Arctic power in the High North Pacific prior to 1945.

15 Min Read

Beyond Subzero: A Future of Cheap, Quiet Polar Submarines

A Swedish Gotland-class diesel-electric submarine in front of a U.S. aircraft carrier — a real-world example of stealth, efficiency, and strategic surprise that inspires the proposed “Hickel Class” fleet.

18 Min Read

Indigenous Power and the Future of Greenland

A coastal settlement in southern Greenland: daily life intertwines subsistence traditions with emerging forms of local development. Photo by Monitotxi (CC BY-SA).

18 Min Read

Trump’s Arctic Gambit: The Battle for Greenland

A coastal village in Greenland, where traditional Inuit life meets growing geopolitical interest and the visible effects of Arctic climate change.

14 Min Read

How Obsession with China Warps U.S. Arctic Policy

Gao Feng, China's Special Representative for Arctic Affairs

16 Min Read

Why NATO’s Arctic Expansion Is Now Backfiring

Royal Marines conduct an Arctic beach assault during NATO’s Cold Response exercise in Harstad, Norway

16 Min Read

Arctic Alliances Tested: Cooperation in an Era of Rivalry

A monochrome view from the deck of an Arctic exploration ship. The photograph captures the ship's side and its extended walkway, leading the eye towards the icy, turbulent Arctic seascape visible in the distance. The image, under a cloudy sky, emphasizes the cold and remote environment of the Arctic region.

Books Global North

17 Min Read

Selected Works in Social Sciences and Humanities

The Book Curator

Laureate Picks

Cover-of-the-book_The-Sum-of-Us.-What-Racism-Costs-Everyone-and-How-We-Can-Prosper-Together

What Racism Really Costs Us All

Book cover-The Blue Plate_A Food Lover's Guide to Climate-Chaos _Climate friendly.

Climate-Friendly Food Choices: The Blue Plate

c0ver of the book Seeing Us in Them

How Group Empathy Can Transform Politics and Society

Enslaved People _Cover-of-the-book-Patchwork-Freedoms_Law-Slavery-and-Race-beyond-Cubas-Plantations-by-Adriana-Chira

Patchwork Freedoms: How Enslaved People Won Their Rights

cover of The Creole Archipelago: Race and Borders in the Colonial Caribbean

Rethinking Colonial Caribbean History

Colonialism-Cover of the book Ruling Emancipated Slaves and Indigenous Subjects

3 Ways Colonialism Shaped Modern Inequality