字幕列表 影片播放 列印英文字幕 (dramatic music) - [Instructor] This map shows the amount of ice around the North pole decreasing rapidly over the years. And as the sea ice steadily melts in the Arctic, the U.S., China, and Russia are stepping up their game in the remote and inhospitable region that's rich in resources and growing in strategic importance. (speaking in foreign language) - There are other people coming into the Arctic and we don't like it. (speaking in foreign language) - It's an untapped area of mineral resources that China would like to explore one day. - Russia has moved quite quickly in the last two years to really boost its military presence in the Arctic. - Greenland allows for trans navigation from Europe to the United States. It provides a place where you can refuel ships, refuel planes, have storage spaces. - [Instructor] An estimated trillion dollars worth of rare earth metals could be lying under all that ice, as well as about 30% of the world's undiscovered gas and 13% of the world's undiscovered oil. The warmer Arctic is also extending the season when ships can navigate in these usually ice covered waters, potentially reducing navigation time between Shanghai and New York, by as much as seven days and making tourism and cargo shipment more attractive. (mortar firing) All this is setting the stage for potential clashes. Almost 10% of Russia's GDP and 20% of its exports come from north of the Arctic circle. And Moscow says it's ready to defend its territory. - The military infrastructure has really been successfully increased in the last several years. (airplane engine jets roaring) One of Russia's most northern base can now handle jet fighters. And that's a huge jump from where it was a couple years ago. - [Instructor] And this activity hasn't gone unnoticed in Washington. - Russia's unique, it actually deserves special attention. - Any signs that Russia is trying to reclaim its status as a great power on the global stage. And especially in a place like the Arctic, which has disputes, is a cause for worry of Washington. I think largely because of that lack of trust. - [Instructor] Russia is also investing to renovate old Soviet ports along its Northern sea route. Cargo shipments, mainly of energy resources are steadily growing, but with little infrastructure and given the still limited period of time between July and November that the route in the Arctic is open, there's still a long way before it becomes a real rival to traditional shipping routes like via the Suez canal. - Right now there's a relatively large gap between what Russia wants to accomplish in the Arctic but it is actually doing. One of the biggest problems right now is infrastructure. So it wants to attract it's international investors. That includes China. (speaking in foreign language) - [Instructor] In 2018, China declared itself a near Arctic state, even though the northern most part of China is more than 900 miles away from the Arctic circle. Basically China plans to carve out shipping routes and tap natural resources. - When China announced a similar strategy, Russia at least verbally welcomed it, but there are still a lot of reservation. (shouting in foreign language) - [Instructor] Western capital and technology in the country dried up following versus annexation of Crimea in 2014. So Moscow has accepted billions of dollars from Beijing in loans and investments, including for the landmark gas project on the Yamal Peninsula. But China's investments are mostly limited to projects that can help it exploit resources. - China doesn't want to just invest for the sake of investing 'cause it wants to actually see a profit come from that. - [Instructor] There's another sticking point between Russia and China and the Arctic. - Russia would want its own icebreakers to accompany most of the vessels. China on the other hand would like fewer navigation where China would need to rely on Russian escorts. And so that's the fundamental, is agreements. - Essentially it's large real estate deal. Lot of things could be done. - [Instructor] Most of the world woke up to the U.S. interest in the Arctic when president Trump floated the idea of buying Greenland, the biggest Island in the region, and which is the site of America's northernmost military base. Denmark, which exercises control over Greenland turned down the idea. So after a decades long hiatus, the U.S. reopened its consulate in Greenland's capital in June. During an interview with the Danish Broadcasting Corporation, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo admitted that the U.S. is playing catch up. - Secretary, are you a bit late to the party in the Arctic. - Yep we're a little late. - Yeah-- - But that's all right I've been late to parties before and had a great time. We'll succeed. - The United States, for instance, has a presence in the Arctic with newly launched Navy fleet that's just a continuation of making sure that that other great powers know that the U.S. isn't losing a step and is able to fight in extreme cold weather battlefields. - We've all been a little bit naive to watch, not only the Russians but the Chinese interest there continue to become more and more aggressive. (audience applauds) - [Instructor] China and Russia insist that they support peaceful economic and scientific cooperation in the region. Meanwhile, Washington is trying to build up its fleet of icebreakers. - We have under construction right now, the largest icebreaker in the world, and we're going to be trying to get, if we can, an extra 10 ice icebreakers. - [Instructor] At the moment, the U.S. has only one old heavy icebreaker in operation compared with Russia, some 40 vessels, including nuclear ones that can smash through ice nine feet thick. China has two icebreakers as well, and it's building a nuclear one. - Ice breakers do a number of things for a country that has that has them. One it keeps open commercial ice channels and allows for the rescue of vessels. If the U.S. is unable to send up a rescue team, other great powers like Russia, and even China can go up there, save people and they'll have a better claim to be able to stay in the Arctic. - [Instructor] For the U.S., China, and Russia, it's a pivotal moment in the Arctic. The moves they make today are likely to define the region for years to come and potentially help reshape global supply chains and energy markets.
B1 中級 美國腔 美国、俄罗斯和中国的高风险北极竞赛升温(High-Stakes Arctic Race Heats Up for U.S., Russia and China | WSJ) 12 1 joey joey 發佈於 2021 年 06 月 12 日 更多分享 分享 收藏 回報 影片單字