Kathmandu. The US Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star (WAGB-10) will be deployed to the Arctic after its routine trip to the Antarctic was cancelled owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. Generally, the medium icebreaker Healy is sent to the Arctic for a scheduled summer deployment, however, after a fire broke out in the vessel, it had to cancel its operations for this year.

The Polar Star that will be travelling to the Arctic for the first time since August 1994, is usually sent to the Antarctic for Operation Deep Freeze, to assist the National Science Foundation, every year. After concerns emerged over the global pandemic, the operation was halted for 2020.

The U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area commander, Vice Admiral Linda Fagan, has claimed that “The Arctic is no longer an emerging frontier, but is instead a region of growing national importance.” Referring to the deployment of the Polar Star, she further added, “The Coast Guard is committed to protecting U.S. sovereignty and working with our partners to uphold a safe, secure, and rules-based Arctic.”

Beyond the issues that have stemmed from  COVID -19 is the reality that both Russia and China have been increasing their respective engagements in the region. The Arctic Strategic Outlook published in 2019, had noted that China had declared itself to be a “Near-Arctic state”, and that Russia was amping up its investments in the military facilities in the region since 2013, having already built 14 icebreakers.

The report reads, “America’s two nearest-peer powers, Russia and China, have both declared the region a national priority and made corresponding investments in capability and capacity to expand their influence in the region. Russia and China’s persistent challenges to the rules-based international order around the globe cause concern of similar infringement to the continued peaceful stability of the Arctic region.”

“As the only U.S. Service that combines both military and civil authorities, the Coast Guard is uniquely suited to address the inter jurisdictional challenges of today’s strategic environment by modeling acceptable behavior, building regional capacity, and strengthening organizations that foster transparency and good governance across the Arctic,” it added.

The President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, had put forth the request for building a second Polar Security Cutter (PSC) heavy icebreaker in the FY 2021 proposed federal budget. The US Coast Guard had asked for a funding of $555 million for the very purpose. With the elections looming afoot, the funding for the project will probably be decided after Election day in the US.

Russia has a total of 40 icebreakers, that makes it the home for the world’s largest icebreaker fleets. The US on the other hand has two icebreakers, the Healy, that is out of commission due to the fire, and the Polar Star. Typically, under normal circumstances, they would both be deployed in opposite directions for their routine duties, but the Polar Star stands as the only operational polar icebreaker for the US at the moment. This comes just as the Russian Navy conducted one of its biggest war games, since the Soviet era, near Alaska in August.