Coast Guard Patrols Russia Sea Border To Protect US Interests
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A United States Coast Guard vessel recently concluded a patrol in the Bering Sea—which lies between Alaska and Russia's Far East—protecting the U.S.'s interests in the region.
The 121-day patrol—conducted by the national security cutter USCGC Munro—comes amid Russia's continued military presence near Alaska, including the deployment of aircraft that approached U.S. airspace on Wednesday, even as Moscow engages in a war in Europe.
Newsweek has contacted the Russian defense and foreign ministries for comment via email.
Why It Matters
The Bering Sea serves as the gateway between the Arctic—a key geopolitical and military frontier between the West and Russia, along with China—and the North Pacific. The Bering Strait is 50 miles wide at the narrowest point between the American and Russian mainlands.
The U.S. military has regularly operated near Alaska and Russia's easternmost border to help defend North America, including joint fighter aircraft missions with Canada over the Bering Strait, and naval deployments in the North Pacific in support of homeland defense.
What To Know
The Munro returned to its home port in Alameda, California, on July 16 following its 23,000-mile deployment patrolling the Bering Sea, the U.S. Coast Guard announced on Tuesday.
The Coast Guard ship was deployed in mid-March to provide a U.S. maritime presence in the Bering Sea, patrolling along the U.S.-Russia maritime boundary line, which runs through the Bering Strait between the U.S.'s Little Diomede Island and Russia's Big Diomede Island.
The United States national security cutter USCGC Munro conducts a gunnery exercise with its gun in the Bering Sea on June 23.
The United States national security cutter USCGC Munro conducts a gunnery exercise with its gun in the Bering Sea on June 23.
Lt. j.g. Samika Lewis/U.S. Coast Guard
Photos released by the Coast Guard show the Munro, which was described as "a worldwide deployable cutter," firing its gun during a gunnery exercise in the Bering Sea on June 23.
While operating in the Coast Guard's Arctic District—an area covering more than 47,300 miles of coastline across Alaska and the Arctic—the ship enforced domestic fishery regulations and promoted maritime governance in support of U.S. strategic interests in the North Pacific.
The Munro's crew boarded fishing vessels 32 times to ensure compliance with U.S. law, preserve the integrity of fish stocks, encourage sustainable fishing practices and maintain a level playing field within the U.S. exclusive economic zone, according to the Coast Guard.
An exclusive economic zone extends up to 230 miles from a country's coastline, where the coastal nation has sovereign rights to explore, exploit, conserve and manage natural resources, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration law enforcement officer was aboard the vessel to enhance enforcement efforts aimed at protecting the $6 billion Alaskan fishery.
A boarding team from the United States national security cutter USCGC Munro conducts a boarding of a fishing vessel in the Aleutian Island chain on June 5.
A boarding team from the United States national security cutter USCGC Munro conducts a boarding of a fishing vessel in the Aleutian Island chain on June 5.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Christopher Visaggio/U.S. Coast Guard
What People Are Saying
The U.S. Coast Guard said in a news release on Tuesday: "The Coast Guard's efforts to secure Arctic waterways aim to ensure American security, prosperity and freedom in the face of evolving Arctic security challenges and risks."
U.S. Coast Guard Captain Jim O'Mara, the commanding officer of USCGC Munro, said in a news release on Tuesday: "Our job in the Bering Sea was to keep U.S. mariners safe, protect the economic integrity of the U.S. exclusive economic zone, and uphold the border control and territorial integrity of the U.S. Arctic."
What Happens Next
Whether the U.S. has deployed the Coast Guard to monitor the Chinese icebreaker Xue Long 2—which was tracked entering the Arctic from East Asia last week—remains unclear.
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