North to the Future: Trans-Arctic Sea Routes
We review the impulse among leaders from around the Arctic, including Russia, Alaska, and nations in Scandinavia, to shift the maritime center of gravity of the planet from the Atlantic Ocean, and shipping channels such as the Suez Canal-- which has always been a geopolitical choke point for British imperial policy-- towards the fabled Northeast Passage, or Northern Sea Route. Recent expeditions have proven that shipping from Europe to Asia via the north pole is substantially faster and economically cheaper than the conventional routes through the Atlantic.