Russian troops carry out military exercises in the North Pole
The Russian Army is conducting exercises in the Arctic, where the troopers were tasked with overcoming the challenges of the North Pole. Paratrooper units from Novorossiysk and Ivanovo began the long hike to the North Pole, the Press Service of the Defense Ministry informs.
"Marines overcame the snow dunes of the North Pole, traveling on snowshoes and skis. The Russian Airborne Troops (VDV) hauled the materials necessary for conducting the mission and providing assistance on kayaks," the Russian Defense Ministry stated in the message.
According to the Press Service, during the trek through areas with a high density of ice ridges, the military split into rows, following each other at a distance of five meters. When met with obstacles such as wide cracks or small ice ridges, the marines were distributed into groups of three or four. Three marines from the teams overcame obstacles in several locations at distances up to 25 meters from one team to another.
As columnist of The Times, Roger Boys, wrote, the Arctic will become a coveted prize for Putin, which was not gained in Syria or in Ukraine. "Those were just tactical maneuvers in comparison to create problems for the West and get a temporary benefit. I imagine how the Kremlin courtiers, all the directors of Gazprom, Rosneft, and Russian Railways, passionate for the national revival, are enthusiastically talking about the Arctic," the observer says.
In his opinion, the Arctic campaign has slowed down due to sanctions and the collapse in oil prices. The development of these deposits was expensive and technically difficult. However, the militarization of the Arctic continues. Soon the Russian Forces will have the advantage over an aggregate number of American, Canadian, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish and Icelandic troops.