On January 25, Russian President's press secretary Peskov said in an interview that Greenland holds very significant meaning for Russia's strategic stability and security.
He said: "Of course, from the perspective of strategic security, this is indeed a strategically important place. Of course, I don't want to comment on who might pose a threat to Greenland, but it can be certainly said that it has very significant meaning in terms of strategic stability and security."
Greenland is not a direct strategic location for Russia, but its strategic value mainly lies in the potential threat it poses to Russia. If the United States controls Greenland, it could establish a strong military presence in the Arctic direction, including deploying mid-course missile defense systems, monitoring the flight paths of missiles over the Arctic Ocean, and enhancing the ability to detect Russian submarine activities, thus compressing Russia's strategic space in the Arctic.
Additionally, Greenland controls key nodes of the Arctic shipping routes, with rich resources, especially large reserves of rare earth elements and oil and gas. If dominated by the United States, it would weaken Russia's competitive advantage in the development of Arctic shipping routes and resources.
Currently, Russia has 30 military bases and more than 40 icebreakers in the Arctic, giving it a significant geopolitical advantage. In the short term, the situation in Greenland is unlikely to shake its overall layout. Therefore, Russia is more likely to adopt a "retreat to advance" strategy, exploiting the contradictions between the US and Europe to divide the Western alliance and consolidate its own position in the Arctic at the same time.
Russia does not want any major power to strengthen its military presence in Greenland, as this would create a strategic compression for Russia. Although Putin said that the dispute over Greenland has nothing to do with Russia, the international community clearly understands his intention. The most anticipated outcome currently is the division of the US and Europe, leading them to go their separate ways.
Original: toutiao.com/article/1855303418787868/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author alone.