China Wants To Play A Big Role In The Arctic

China's icebreaker Xuelong docks at an ice covered area in the Antarctic during a 2014 expedition. [Photo/Sina Weibo]

CNBC: Tensions will likely grow as China seeks bigger role in the Arctic  

* China’s ambitions to take a more significant role in the Arctic are likely to lead to growing tensions, according to Oksana Antonenko, a director at risk consultancy firm Control Risks. 

 * Beijing announced plans for a “Polar Silk Road” in 2018 and previously referred to itself as a “near-Arctic state,” a proposition that ignited some controversy. 

China’s ambitions to take a more significant role in the Arctic will likely lead to growing tensions, according to risk consultancy firm Control Risks. 

China has developed a “prominent presence” in the region since joining the Arctic Council as an observer in 2013, Oksana Antonenko, director at Control Risks, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.” 

The Arctic Council is made up of eight Arctic States — Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden and the United States.  

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WNU Editor: This blog has been covering China's intentions in the Arctic for years (see below). It is about time that the countries that border the Arctic have taken notice. 

China Wants To Lay Claim To The Arctic (April 6, 2014)  

China Wants To Exploit The Resources In The Arctic (July 24, 2014)

Can China Be Trusted In The Arctic? (December 3, 2014)  

Update: this is what I said on April 6, 2014 ....

.... This is not the first time that China has made such claims. I actually had such a conversation with my Chinese friends a few years ago .... they were trying to convince me that the Arctic belongs to the world, and those who have the means should exploit it (i.e. to look for oil and natural resources). That claim is (in my opinion) ridiculous and dubious .... but that is what they are preaching in Beijing.