Model Un - Russian Fed Arctic Colonization

For centuries the Arctic was seen as a barren wasteland of endless polar ice caps and unforgiving conditions. It was a death trap that the nearby nations would avoid. Very recently, with the warming of the Earth many of these nations have solidified their claims while recognizing the endless potential that the Arctic can hold. The area can be a strategic location for military pursuits, economic growth, and is littered with much of the Earth’s untapped resources. From the early 20th century the Russian Federation and former Soviet Union have vast claims in this area. As it has rapidly become more and more seductive to outside bodies, many other outside nations have laid claims on the rightful lands of the Arctic 8 and more specifically the Arctic Council. The question here lies in where a nation’s jurisdiction ends in territory like the Arctic. While nations have held and split territory for many years other nations are only recently crying for global use of the lands.

The Russian Federation can proudly claim, and rightfully so, the largest claim to the Arctic territory. However, unlike others the Russian Federation has maintained and developed this for decades. Before the Arctic became a lucrative spot for foreign investment the Soviets and Russians were using it for strategic military bases and testing sites during previous conflicts. The Russian federation has planned for many years to use the Arctic for economic, political, and social purposes. In recent years the Russian Federation’s Arctic policy has been centered on a three-pronged plan. The first step was to validate its own claims to the Arctic. Much research and scientific analysis has gone into substantiating claims in the Arctic. It is critical that the Russian Federation maintain these lands because they are full of much of the Earth’s un-extracted oil and natural gas claims. This and building infrastructure in the existing bases in the Artic are the focal points of the first step. The second step, after solidifying