The Russian Empire Expands

Russian President Vladimir Putin says a military base on the Novosibirsk Islands in the Arctic Ocean will restart operations soon.  The Russians had closed their military base in the Arctic back in 1993.

International law forbids any one nation from claiming the Arctic; however, the natural resources in that area include oil, natural gas, diamonds and gold.

The expansion is interesting considering that Russia is once again reasserting itself in the world as a global power.

A number of countries share their border with the Arctic including Russia, Finland, U.S. (Alaska), Canada, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden and Iceland. 

The Russians sent 10 warships to reopen the military base claiming that they are hoping to reopen the Northern sea route; however, experts are advising that this is a very unlikely scenario due to the ice and narrow passage ways.   

A logical explanation for the expansion is the natural resources that are believed to be in the Arctic.  The natural resources may be the cause of Russian advancement in the area. 

The other explanation is that the Arctic position would give it a strategic position to threaten the Northern Hemisphere in the case of war.