RUSSIAN MILITARY BUILD-UP
IN
THE
ARCTIC:
STRATEGIC SHIFT IN THE BALANCE OF POWER OR
BELLICOSE RHETORIC ONLY?
Barbora Padrtová
The Arctic has been playing a central role in Russia’s identity and economic development. On the naval-strategic level, the
most relevant for Moscow is maintaining of the credibility of nuclear deterrence, securing the open access of strategic
submarines to world’s seas and in theoretical case of large-scale European war the Russian Navy´s strategic objective would
be to interrupt the connection between Europe and North America (the latter was more eminent during th H