Marine Corps Equities in the Arctic

Increased human activity in the Arctic will bring an increased need for maritime operations, ranging from peacetime search and rescue to sea control in times of conflict. Economic activity may outpace the ability of the US Navy and Coast Guard to develop capabilities to operate in the Arctic. Presently there is a very limited US icebreaker capability and no surface combatant ships are reinforced for operations in a sea-ice environment. The Marine Corps may execute a sea control mission in the Arctic to make up for the sea services capability gaps, operating in the straits and narrows that make up the Northwest Passage and the Northern Sea route where a land based force can gain an advantage.