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The senior Democrat on a US congressional committee focused on China is urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio to fill the State Department’s vacant post for Arctic affairs, citing intensifying competition with Beijing and adding to growing pressure to address the vacancy.
The Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs leads US engagement with the eight-country Arctic Council and coordinates American interests related to safety and security, economic development and intergovernmental cooperation. The position has been vacant since January, when its inaugural holder, Mike Sfraga, stepped down.
“At a time when the People’s Republic of China is dramatically expanding its military, economic and scientific presence in the Arctic region, this prolonged vacancy undermines our representation within the Arctic Council and our position in one of the world’s most strategically vital regions,” wrote Raja Krishnamoorthi, the ranking member on the House Select Committee on the Communist Party, in a letter obtained by the Post.
China’s behaviour has become “more hostile” in the past year, the Illinois Democrat said, pointing to reports of Chinese research vessels operating in the US Arctic over the summer.
He also highlighted China’s infrastructure development plans in the Arctic – such as subsea cable networks – that pose “significant dual-use concerns”, as well as “unprecedented levels of military and security cooperation” between Beijing and Arctic Council member Russia.
02:02
Chinese scientists conduct ‘crucial’ expedition in the Arctic Ocean
Chinese scientists conduct ‘crucial’ expedition in the Arctic Ocean
Leaving the US envoy position vacant thus “allows Beijing and Moscow to attempt to shape regional norms to their advantage”, Krishnamoorthi warned in the letter sent to Rubio on Wednesday.
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