US Coast Guard – Icebreaker Break-down, and the USCG's Crossroads

Defense Technology InternationalIcebreaker Break-down, and the USCG’s Crossroads

One of the U.S. Coast Guard’s three polar icebreakers, the Polar Sea, likely will be in maintenance and unavailable for operations until at least January 2011, the armed service announced Friday afternoon. The breakdown means the icebreaker will skip its fall Arctic patrol, and it will most likely keep the cutter from providing standby capability to support resupply of McMurdo Station, Antarctica.

Geopolitics / Arctic – Uneasy passage: The Northwest Passage is central to Canadian identity, yet its future remains uncertain

Edmonton JournalUneasy passage: The Northwest Passage is central to Canadian identity, yet its future remains uncertain

Though few Canadians have ever sailed it, the Northwest Passage strikes a resonant chord in this country. These feelings stem from a romantic passion for the North, as well as from practical reasons involving sovereignty and control over Arctic waters and resources.

Afghanistan – What Marja Tells Us of Battles Yet to Come

New York TimesWhat Marja Tells Us of Battles Yet to Come

C.J. Chivers says that as NATO and Afghan forces flow into neighboring Kandahar Province, where for the next many months the latest high-profile effort to undo the Taliban’s hold will unroll, the continuing fighting in Marja can be read as a sign of problems in the American-led surge. It can also be read as something less worrisome: a difficult period in a campaign always expected to be hard.

US Coast Guard – Breaking Down the Coast Guard

Defense Technology InternationalBreaking Down the Coast Guard

After a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the city of Port au Prince, Haiti this past January, the U.S. Coast Guard responded quickly, and in force. But according to Building a U.S. Coast Guard for the 21st Century, a new report released yesterday by the Center for American Progress (CAP), twelve of the nineteen cutters that were sent to Haiti required emergency maintenance while en route, and two had to be recalled from operations for emergency dry-dock repairs.

Piracy – Warships intensifying hunt for pirates at sea, but pirate bosses on land remain elusive

Canadian PressWarships intensifying hunt for pirates at sea, but pirate bosses on land remain elusive

While the European Union Naval Force is more actively hunting pirates than ever before on the high seas, their financiers and organizers remain out of reach on land. Officials complain that not enough is being done to gather intelligence on them and their assets even as law enforcement agencies cite problems with co-ordinating the collection of information and legal barriers in sharing it.

Geopolitics – Polar frontiers

Armed Forces JournalPolar frontiers

A new Arctic age is emerging. New forces are transforming the very fabric of the entire region. Some of these changes will positively benefit those people who call the region home, while some will have negative impacts. Decision-makers in the Arctic nations will need to be increasingly mindful of these changes and need to develop policies that are innovative, proactive and intelligent.