'Strategic messaging': Russian fighters in Arctic spark debate on Canada's place

Bob WeberBob Weber, The Associated Press

 Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin walks after inspecting a new Russian fighter jet after its test flight in Zhukovksy, outside Moscow, Russia, on June 17, 2010. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, RIA Novosti, Alexei Druzhinin, Government Press Service

Recent Russian moves in the Arctic have renewed debate over that country's intentions and Canada's own status at the top of the world.

The newspaper Izvestia reported late last month that Russia's military will resume fighter patrols to the North Pole for the first time in 30 years. The patrols will be in addition to regular bomber flights up to the edge of U.S. and Canadian airspace.

“It's clearly sending strategic messaging,” said Whitney Lackenbauer, an Arctic expert and history professor at the University of Waterloo. “This is the next step.”

 Russia has been beefing up both its civilian and military capabilities in its north for a decade....https://www.cp24.com/news/strategic-messaging-russian-fighters-in-arctic-spark-debate-on-canada-s-place-1.4290477