U.S., South Korea and Japan to cooperate on Arctic navigation and mining

The United States, South Korea and Japan have agreed to establish a joint Arctic cooperation system for navigation and mining. It's from sb.by.

According to TASS, the relevant document is now at the final stage of coordination and should be signed by the foreign ministers of the three countries on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York.

In particular, it is planned to form a working group of representatives of Washington, Seoul and Tokyo on the so-called Arctic-Pacific cooperation. The joint document will emphasize that cooperation in the Arctic Ocean is critical for the economic security of all three countries.

Japan is going to offer its partners its technologies for building icebreakers and experience in the polar regions, accumulated over the years of expeditions to Antarctica. In addition, from 2026, Tokyo plans to start operating the Mirai-2 research icebreaker in Arctic waters, which will conduct meteorological and oceanographic research to ensure navigation in the Arctic Ocean.

Washington, Seoul and Tokyo also intend to start consultations on mining, including in the US sector of the Arctic.

The European Council announced an increase in EU military spending in the Arctic