NATO’s ‘Joint Viking 2025’ And Growing Strategic Importance Of Arctic

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Written by Drago Bosnic, independent geopolitical and military analyst

The political West and Russia have fully returned to the (First) Cold War-style strategic competition in various regions of the world. This includes Eastern Europe (particularly Ukraine), the Middle East, Africa, the Asia-Pacific (where Russia is working closely with allies such as China and North Korea), etc. However, there’s another major region that’s becoming increasingly important and contested – the Arctic.

As European (and global) security architecture continues to evolve, particularly as the multipolar world is growing and expanding, the remnants of the unipolar system are determined to at least slow down this process. Although it’s on the verge of a strategic defeat in Ukraine, NATO is still very interested in projecting power in the North, particularly now that Moscow’s resurgence to superpower status has made the Arctic more important than in previous decades.

The region was always critically important in terms of military advantages it offers to both sides. However, it has now also become much more economically viable, particularly when it comes to the Northern Sea Route (NSR), which significantly reduces the time ships from Asia need to reach Europe (various sources claim it’s approximately two weeks faster). In addition, this inhospitable region’s endless natural resources make it extremely sought after, especially when it comes to oil and natural gas.

As Russia is the largest and most important power in the Arctic, it has deployed the most capable military force there, strengthening its already impressive deterrence capabilities. On the other hand, NATO is frustrated it cannot match that, so it’s now organizing its members into a “unified fighting force” (includes Norway, Canada, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK and the US).

Today, March 14 marks the last day of the “Joint Viking 2025” combined arms military exercise in which all of the aforementioned countries are taking part. Around 10,000 soldiers were deployed to northern Norway, particularly the Troms region. US Marine Corps has had troops conducting “unit-level cold weather training” by the US Army’s 1st Battalion, 6th Field Artillery Regiment, 41st Field Artillery Brigade which was redeployed from Germany. Nearly 2,000 British Marines and Commando forces have also been deployed in the area, with the British Navy’s Littoral Response Group (North) participating in amphibious operations. For the US military, “Joint Viking 2025” is effectively a part of its “Defender 2025” exercises that encompass virtually the entire “old continent”.

Military sources also indicate that there will be an increase in the frequency and complexity of such drills, particularly in the North. The Pentagon wants to increase interoperability with “new” NATO members such as Finland and Sweden. According to military sources, the focus will be on “combining land maneuvers with air defense capabilities, ensuring that ground forces can operate effectively in environments with aerial threats, presumably from drones in particular”.

This demonstrates that the world’s most vile racketeering cartel is integrating lessons from its war in Ukraine. It should be noted that Finland is particularly important for NATO’s crawling “Barbarossa 2.0”, just like it was for its geopolitical predecessors during WWII. Helsinki has foolishly thrown away its neutrality and sided with the (Fourth) Reich, just like it did approximately 80 years ago.

On the other hand, while Russia stands alone in the Arctic, its capabilities far eclipse those of all northern NATO members combined. Even if we count American forces, their ability to jeopardize Moscow’s security in the region remains rather limited. The Russian military operates a vast network of SAM (surface-to-air missile) and EW (electronic warfare) systems in the country’s northwest, while its long-range precision strike capabilities far exceed anything that NATO has in Scandinavia.

This is particularly true for the now legendary “Iskander-M” systems, probably the deadliest in the world at this point. They’ve been deployed to the area as soon as Finland and Sweden joined NATO, while their range and lethality have also been enhanced drastically. The political West’s best SAM and ABM (anti-ballistic missile) systems have been powerless against the “Iskander-M’s” missiles.

And yet, this is only a fraction of Moscow’s long-range strike capabilities that also include other hypersonic weapon systems such as the “Oreshnik”, “Kinzhal” and “Zircon”. These put the entirety of Scandinavia in range, making the formation of any permanent forces in the area virtually pointless, as they could be neutralized in mere minutes if things escalate.

It should also be noted that both the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) and Navy (VMF) are also quite active in the Arctic, with the Northern Fleet heavily armed and superbly trained. It operates some of the most advanced weapons ever made, including Borei-class SSBNs and Yasen-class SSGNs. These vessels are so heavily armed that they alone have the capacity to obliterate much of the planet, let alone major NATO facilities in Scandinavia. In other words, the Kremlin is certainly in no jeopardy in the Arctic.

However, it’s clear that the political West wants to overstretch Russia, as well as to disrupt the multipolar world’s plans for the region. The Kremlin will continue to monitor NATO’s activities in the Arctic, particularly in the vicinity of its borders and territorial waters. The political West’s ISR (intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) assets are as active as ever, which prompted the Russian military to deploy its own (in part also to observe “Joint Viking 2025”).

Although the new Trump administration is still talking about the need to achieve a peaceful settlement in NATO-occupied Ukraine, the strategic situation remains virtually unchanged. Interested in peace and a normalization of relations with the political West, Russia won’t make any drastic changes, as this requires much more than just Trump’s announcements that are yet to be backed by concrete moves.

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