United States plans to acquire Commander Islands from Russia put forward for discussion
The Commander Islands, located in the Bering Sea between Russia and Alaska, have recently been at the centre of a controversial proposal. The proposal, originating from Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Fritz serving in Estonia, suggests the purchase of these islands from Russia for strategic military purposes.
Lieutenant Colonel Fritz values the Commander Islands at $15 billion, a figure he believes represents a significant and pragmatic financial offer to Russia. He sees the islands as strategically valuable for the United States, providing a base to monitor Chinese submarine activities in the Arctic, enhancing regional security and U.S. military capabilities near the Bering Strait.
The proposed monitoring of Chinese submarines is focused on those heading towards the Arctic, a region experiencing increasing naval activity. The deal, according to Fritz, could be beneficial to both Russia and the United States, offering potential economic benefits and aligning with the rights of the Aleut indigenous people divided by international borders since 1867, as stated in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
However, Russia strongly rejects the proposal, regarding the Commander Islands as a matter of national pride and legal sovereignty. Selling territory is considered a grave crime in Russia, and the offer, regardless of the financial figure, is dismissed outright.
The proposal has not been officially endorsed or rejected by the United States government. The exact reasoning behind the $15 billion valuation of the Commander Islands by Fritz is not explained, but he considers the purchase as a "peaceful and pragmatic" step.
If the Commander Islands were to be acquired, they could potentially enhance the United States' Arctic surveillance capabilities, making it a significant strategic consideration in the context of increasing naval activity in the region. The proposal, while controversial, highlights the complex geopolitical dynamics at play in the Arctic.
- The proposal, originating from Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Fritz, suggests that the acquisition of the Commander Islands from Russia could be a peaceful and pragmatic step for the United States, given their potential to enhance Arctic surveillance capabilities and monitor Chinese submarine activities – dynamics that are increasingly relevant in war-and-conflicts, politics, and general news.
- Regardless of the financial figure proposed by Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Fritz, the complex geopolitical dynamics surrounding the Commander Islands, including issues of sovereignty and national pride, make Russia's outright rejection of the proposal an understandable response – a rejection that underscores the controversial nature of this proposal in the realm of war-and-conflicts, politics, and general news.
