‘Conflict and Cooperation’: Arctic Summit confronts Bering Strait tensions and ties

ARCTIC ENCOUNTER— Ambassadors from Canada, Japan, South Korea, and the United States engage in a panel discussion hosted by the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies at the 2025 Arctic Encounter Summit.| Photo by Jenni Monet

By Jenni Monet

When President Trump signed into law the controversial spending and tax bill dubbed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” on the Fourth of July, it represented a pivot toward investing in hard power for the United States Arctic, a topic which became central to geopolitical talks held in Anchorage, last week.

Many of the diplomatic and corporate figures attending the annual Arctic Encounter Summit mentioned the Bering Strait and its growing importance, including the City of Nome and its proposed port expansion. 

As melting sea ice opens new shipping routes in the circumpolar north, and deep-sea minerals and offshore petroleum reserves become more accessible, building the nation’s first Arctic deepwater port has increasingly factored into the Trump administration’s national security and energy interests—and at a time of strategic posturing to counter Russia and China. 

The Arctic Encounter, now in its eleventh year, has long focused on the implications of the north’s rising seas, and one discussion at the recent gathering, “Conflict and Cooperation,” worked to identify Bering Strait tensions and ties.  Heightened interest among attendees rank the region as one of the most valuable, yet vulnerable corridors in the U.S.

For decades, lawmakers and the private sector in Alaska have promoted the need for an enhanced Arctic presence.  With the reconciliation megabill, billions of dollars in Arctic-focused security and icebreaker spending has now elevated the country’s competitive edge, say experts, and with Nome at the center of these developments. 
“Whether it be expanding the ice breaking fleet, or to deepwater ports like Nome, modernizing our capabilities has been tremendous,” said Dr. Julia Nesheiwat on opening day of the summit, Wednesday, July 30. 

A former member of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission and past Homeland Security Advisor to President Trump, Nesheiwat emphasized the need for even more Arctic investments.  “There is a race going on when you think about competitors like Russia and China — and the U.S. is lagging.” 

Later, David Balton, the former U.S. Ambassador whose work has been foundational in Arctic diplomacy, noted how quickly China has pursued Arctic energy interests, including investing in Russian liquified natural gas and seeking out deep-sea minerals for mining.
“Strategic competition is economic competition,” he said.  “The question is: How worried should we be?” he asked. 

Arctic Efforts
U.S. efforts remain comparatively modest and fragmented to Russia and China’s engagement in the Arctic.  While Russia fields the world’s largest icebreaker fleet and invests hundreds of billions in Arctic energy and infrastructure, China pours resources into its “Polar Silk Road” agenda to develop Arctic shipping routes and infrastructure. 

President Trump, meanwhile, has called for the U.S. to acquire 40 new icebreakers to expand the nation’s current fleet—just two polar-grade ships that are aging. 

His sweeping spending and tax package alone allocates over $9 billion for the U.S. Coast Guard’s Polar Security Cutter program, including the construction of three medium-class icebreakers.  And the Storis will become the first new polar icebreaker in over 25  years—set for commissioning in Juneau later this month. 

In addition, the president signed executive orders earlier in the year in support of deep-sea mining and fast-track permitting.

In this moment, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy said the state is doubling down on its resource development goals, including a quest to ship liquefied natural gas to Asian markets. 

“Obviously, the President of the United States supports this project for a whole host of reasons, not just economic, but national security reasons, as well,” he said. “We’re preparing for that, having discussions with communities such as Nome, and building out the ports and capabilities to handle that shipping.” 

Corporate leaders were as vocal in calling on market forces to enhance Arctic engagement. 

BSNC's Sound Quarry intends to supply the rock for the Port of Nome expansion. | Photo by Diana Haecker

Port of Nome
The Bering Straits Native Corporation, the Alaska Native Corporation with some 8,000 Iñupiat shareholders, expressed excitement—mostly over the Port of Nome expansion project.

“That is going to provide a windfall for us in investing in our region,” said Haven Harris, a senior vice president for BSNC.  The company’s subsidiary Sound Quarry Inc. intends to supply the armor-stone rock foundation for the expansion—a plan to increase the docking space on causeways as well as deepen the port’s depth from 22 feet to 40 feet to allow a range of vessels to dock there, including every U.S. military ship smaller than an aircraft carrier. 

But speaking at a summit luncheon before a few hundred people, Harris was careful to address concerns important to subsistence hunters who harvest animals, fish, and sea mammals in the region.

“We know these plans are going to impact our people,” Harris said, referencing another BSNC venture tied to the Graphite One mining project near Nome—believed to be the largest known graphite deposit in the U.S.
BSNC invested $2 million in the proposed mine project.  As Harris explained, the buy-in was to ensure Iñupiat voices were heard whenever concerns about the environment or subsistence resources, such as salmon, arose. “It was less a financial decision than a cultural and inclusion one,” he said.

YOUTH AMBASSADOR— Arctic Youth Ambassador Kellie Miller of Nome poses a question about the Marine Mammal Protection Act to panelists at the Arctic Encounter Summit 2025. | Photo by Jenni Monet

Concerns
But Indigenous rights advocates were diligent in pushing back on Alaska’s support for Trump’s call for “energy dominance,” drawing attention to the president’s deep roll backs on environmental protections, regulations and scientific research.

One Arctic Youth Ambassador from Nome, Kellie Miller, raised concerns about draft amendments to the Marine Mammal Protection Act that could increase industrial disturbances and habitat threats for key species in the Bering Strait and the Arctic, including ringed seals, bowhead whales and Pacific walruses.

Vera Kingeekuk Metcalf, the St. Lawrence Island Yupik Elder who heads the Alaska Eskimo Walrus Commission, said many subsistence leaders in the region have been voicing their opposition to these proposed amendments.  “The changes will allow more industry to occur without consulting tribes and moving forward,” she said. 

Mike Sfraga, the Fairbanks geographer who was the first and only U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs, reminded attendees of the Arctic’s unique distinction as a zone of peace.  “But it is no longer isolated,” he said. “The growing relationship to Russia and China—we see this playing out right here in the Bering Strait and we should be paying close attention to that and be prepared.” 

He cautioned that national security should translate beyond military and energy norms—through the safeguarding of food, water, and knowledge systems that have been respected among the Arctic’s eight nations across decades.  But this, he said, would require an investment in diplomacy. Sfraga, who was appointed by President Joe Biden, resigned in January consistent with the transition of a new administration. 
Under Trump, the ambassador position remains vacant. 

Fairbanks geographer and the first and only U.S. Ambassador-at-Large for Arctic Affairs, Mike Sfraga, engaging in a panel discussion at the 2025 Arctic Encounter Summit. | Photo by Jenni Monet