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Army poised to revamp Alaska forces to prep for Arctic fight

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Army poised to revamp Alaska forces to prep for Arctic fight


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JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska — The U.S. Military is poised to revamp its forces in Alaska to higher put together for future cold-weather conflicts, and it’s anticipated to interchange the bigger, closely geared up Stryker Brigade within the state with a extra cell infantry unit higher fitted to the frigid combat, Military leaders say.

Military Secretary Christine Wormuth stated she expects to make a closing resolution quickly concerning the Alaska troop change, saying she’s going to possible convert the Stryker unit, which makes use of heavy, eight-wheeled autos, to an infantry brigade.

“I feel proper now the aim of Military forces in Alaska is far more about creating an excessive chilly climate succesful formation” that might be utilized in Europe or the Indo-Pacific, Wormuth informed The Related Press on a current journey to Alaska to fulfill with senior commanders and troops. “We’re attempting to get to a spot the place now we have Arctic succesful forces — forces that may survive and function in that atmosphere.”

The U.S. has lengthy seen the Arctic as a rising space of competitors with Russia and China, significantly as local weather change brings hotter temperatures and opens the ocean lanes for longer durations of time. However officers have acknowledged that the U.S. lags behind these nations. Russia has taken steps to extend its navy presence there, and China views the area as economically invaluable for transport and pure assets.

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The modifications within the Military have been into consideration nicely earlier than U.S. tensions with Russia soared following its invasion of Ukraine.

Below the brand new Military plan, the first Stryker Brigade Fight Crew, twenty fifth Infantry Division, now primarily based in Alaska, can be transformed to a light-weight infantry brigade. Mixed with the division’s 4th Infantry Brigade Fight staff, the 2 items will turn into the eleventh Airborne Division, primarily based in Alaska. And the big Stryker autos, that are considerably previous, would get replaced by different autos which might be extra appropriate for the icy and snowy terrain, Wormuth stated.

The better deal with cold-weather warfare features a transfer to conduct main coaching workout routines for the Alaska-based troops of their house state, underneath the climate situations they might face in an Arctic combat. The troops had been scheduled to go to the Joint Readiness Coaching Middle at Fort Polk, Louisiana, in March, however Military leaders determined to maintain them in Alaska so they might practice underneath the frigid temperatures and frozen terrain that they might encounter in any cold-weather battle.

“I feel it actually is smart to have forces educated within the Arctic environments that they might be used for,” Wormuth stated after spending two days on the nonetheless snowy base. “If we’re going to have floor forces in Alaska, that’s what we want them to have the ability to do. They will’t get that have going to the Mojave Desert or to Fort Polk.”

Final yr, in an preliminary trial occasion, Pacific-based forces stayed in Hawaii for his or her scheduled workout routines on the Nationwide Coaching Middle in California’s Mohave Desert. Commanders stated they’ve realized from these first two strikes, as they attempt to recreate situations and relocate personnel and tools from well-established coaching facilities to extra distant areas.

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Throughout her go to to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Wormuth met with commanders who referred to as the coaching shift successful. Maj. Gen. Brian Eifler, commander of U.S. Military Alaska, stated the advantages outweighed any shortfalls created by the necessity to construct the infrastructure for the coaching train within the distant north.

“You’re getting the perfect of each worlds, with out dropping an excessive amount of,” Eifler stated. “We did get much more out of it than we thought we might.”

Eifler stated that whereas they didn’t have as many coaching observers or civilian function gamers as they might have at one of many coaching facilities, the trainers that did come have been in a position to study extra about Arctic climate operations.

As well as, Eifler stated, the change averted the pricey and time-consuming cargo of autos, weapons and different tools to Louisiana and again. The prolonged packing and transport course of earlier than and after a coaching train in Louisiana or California usually forces troops to be with out their weapons programs and different tools for weeks.

Throughout briefings on the Alaska base, commanders stated the coaching included large-scale fight operations underneath excessive climate situations in what they referred to as the “most difficult atmosphere on earth.” They stated that 10,000 troops — together with Canadian Military and Air forces — have been concerned within the train.

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However they stated the train additionally underscored the necessity for higher cold-weather autos, together with these able to carrying Arctic infantry forces.

Gen. Joseph Martin, the vice chief of the Military who was in Alaska this yr, stated the service has been learning what can be the perfect kind of auto for the troops. “Is the Stryker the appropriate car for an Arctic warrior? Within the winter, you want autos that may transfer throughout snow,” he stated.

As well as, he stated, the car additionally wants to have the ability to function within the spring or summer season thaw, when the bottom turns to mud.

As Wormuth wrapped up her go to, she urged that the choice on the Stryker Brigade is transferring ahead quickly. Any closing resolution would wish approval from Protection Secretary Lloyd Austin.

“If you happen to’re going to do large actions of apparatus and issues like that, the summer season is a fairly vital window as a result of it’s rather a lot simpler to maneuver autos round than doing it within the useless of winter,” she stated.

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And in conversations with congressional lawmakers, together with throughout a listening to this week, she made clear that the change wouldn’t cut back the variety of troopers in Alaska. As a substitute, she stated that whereas the infantry brigade can be smaller, the Military would offset that loss by rising the dimensions and capabilities of the headquarters.

Extra broadly, she talked with commanders in Alaska concerning the potential want for extra modifications because the U.S. navy’s Arctic technique evolves.

The U.S., Wormuth stated, has resisted strikes to militarize the Arctic, whilst Russia has expanded its navy presence and basing there. However, she stated, “will that mindset proceed given what the Russians are doing in Ukraine? Or will that get revisited? Will that create a window to consider issues otherwise?”

Commanders stated there are questions on whether or not one of many Pentagon’s combatant instructions — equivalent to European Command or Northern Command, primarily based in Colorado — ought to take full possession of the Arctic and the U.S. navy function there. Wormuth stated the difficulty wants additional dialogue, and any resolution could also be years away.



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Alaska

Alaska Airlines Adds New Routes from Anchorage and Portland

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Alaska Airlines Adds New Routes from Anchorage and Portland


Alaska Airlines (AS) announced a significant expansion of its summer 2025 network, introducing the first-ever nonstop flights connecting Anchorage to Detroit and Sacramento while reinstating service between Fairbanks and Portland.



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Alaska’s congressional delegation reacts to Biden’s planned ban on offshore drilling

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Alaska’s congressional delegation reacts to Biden’s planned ban on offshore drilling


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Alaska’s congressional delegation is responding on Monday — some members more vocally than others — to the White House’s announcement that President Joe Biden will ban new offshore oil and gas drilling along most of the U.S. coastline.

This order will protect approximately 625 million acres of ocean along America’s Atlantic and Pacific coasts, the Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska’s Bering Sea, citing environmental risks as one of the main reasons for the decision.

In a statement, President Biden, whose term expires in two weeks, said he is using authority under the federal Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which gives the president power to withdraw unleased lands from the outer continental shelf indefinitely.

Furthermore, he said that during his term, his administration has conserved more than 670 million acres of America’s lands and waters —more than any other president in history.

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“Our country’s remarkable conservation and restoration progress has been locally led by Tribes, farmers and ranchers, fishermen, small businesses, and outdoor recreation enthusiasts across the country. Together, our ‘America the Beautiful’ initiative put the United States on track to meet my ambitious goal to conserve at least 30 percent of our Nation’s lands and waters by 2030,” President Biden said in a statement.

Reacting to the news on social media, newly sworn-in Rep. Nick Begich, R-Alaska, hit the ground running, calling the President a “son of a bitch” in a social media post on “X”.

Begich continued in the post saying, “Events like this should serve as a constant reminder that the Democratic machine is more than willing to sacrifice us all for their sanctimonious, socialist-driven climate science.”

Speaking to Alaska’s News Source on Monday, Begich said sometimes, in Congress, you have to “shout to be heard.”

“I’m sorry that we had to say what we did, but I’m not sorry that we did it, and I will continue to be a strong voice for Alaska while I’m in Congress,” Begich said.

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The Biden Administration stated that the withdrawal will safeguard 44 million acres of the Northern Bering Sea, located in far northwest Alaska. The Alaskan congressional delegation has previously opposed proposals to permit oil and gas leasing and drilling in this region.

Opposing what he describes as a last-minute move by the Biden Administration, Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, stated on Monday that he has never advocated for resource development in the Bering Sea area, as there is limited resource potential in that region.

Sullivan’s frustration lies in the unilateral process that the Biden Administration aims to use to make such a broad, sweeping move. Furthermore, Sullivan says the administration did not consult Alaska’s congressional delegation before announcing it.

“We’ve had 68 executive orders and executive actions singularly focused on Alaska by the Biden-Harris Administration. They did not consult with us on probably even one of them,” Sullivan said. “It’s no exaggeration to say this administration has sanctioned Alaskans and our energy industry more than he sanctioned the terrorist regimes in Iran and Venezuela.”

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, echoed Sullivan in a statement released Monday saying she understands the Biden Administration is trying to establish its “environmental legacy” before leaving office, but she believes the “11th-hour” move is the wrong approach.

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She went on to say she agrees not all offshore areas need to be available for development and understands the desire of Alaska Tribes in the region to prevent any oil and gas development in nearby waters.

Her frustrations, like Sullivan’s, are broader.

“Cook Inlet is a good example: instead of working with Alaskans to prevent looming energy shortages in Southcentral, the administration has actively worked against our ability to produce more natural gas from that basin. What we have faced over the past four years is an unbalanced policy that has left us on the verge of importing LNG,” Murkowski said.

Speaking to the Biden Administration’s concerns about man-made catastrophes, such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that took the lives of eleven people and released millions of barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, Begich acknowledged that the fishing industry is vital to Alaska.

However, he emphasized the importance of examining Alaska’s track record concerning these issues.

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“We have the highest environmental standards in Alaska, as of any jurisdiction in the world. When you shut down areas like Alaska, you’re just pushing that work to a jurisdiction with lower environmental standards and a worse record,” Begich said.

When asked about what Alaska’s congressional delegation is doing in light of a new administration that touts the unleashing of Alaska’s national resource potential, Sullivan said he has a meeting scheduled with North Dakota Governor (Doug) Burgum on Tuesday. Burgum has been nominated by President-elect Trump as the new Secretary of the Interior and as the chairman of the newly formed National Energy Council.

“What we’re working on with them is to look at ways in which we can reverse many of these executive orders, either through a Trump Administration executive order or through legislation,” Sullivan said.

He stated the delegation is examining what is known as budget reconciliation provisions.

“We’re going to try and get passed in the law that focus on unleashing American energy. And when you unleash American energy, you have to unleash Alaska,” Sullivan said.

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Begich added that unraveling the Biden Administration’s latest order using provisions under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act could be difficult and may require an act of Congress.

“The Act that President Biden has invoked has some very specific language that may be challenging to repeal when President Trump takes office,” Begich said.

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Alaska’s snow crab season is back after 2-year pause, but battered industry faces uncertainty

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Alaska’s snow crab season is back after 2-year pause, but battered industry faces uncertainty


For two years in a row, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game canceled the snow crab season in the Bering Sea after biologists discovered an estimated 10 billion crabs had mysteriously disappeared — a 90% plunge in the population.

Now, fishermen are once again allowed to catch snow crabs — but they’re facing uncertainty as the species has only rebounded to a small fraction of what it once was. Meanwhile, some are still dealing with the consequences of the two-year pause.

“It’s been extremely difficult,” said commercial fisherman Gabriel Prout, who’s based on Kodiak Island. “There’s not a lot you can do. These boats are specifically designed to go out and catch crab, so we’re over $4 million in debt.”

Biologists blamed the rapid decline of snow crab on a 2018 climate-fueled heatwave. This “warming event” was initially thought of as a rare “lightning strike,” explained research biologist Ben Daly, but the “concern moving forward is that the predictions are suggesting higher frequency of lightning strikes in the future.”

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Daly is now developing tracking devices to monitor snow crabs and identify healthy populations for sustainable harvesting.

“It helps us understand their movement patterns in response to environmental changes,” Daly said.

And it’s not just snow crabs that have been affected by warming waters. Other Alaskan species, like Pacific cod, king salmon and pollock have also experienced population decline. Between 2022 and 2023, Alaska’s seafood industry suffered a nearly $2 billion loss, according to NOAA. 

That industry extends to fish markets and dinner tables thousands of miles from Alaska. In some places, prices of Alaskan seafood have shot up nearly 60% in just a few years, according to Expana, which monitors pricing across the seafood industry.

“What the customer has to be aware of, more of what you’ll be eating will be imported, more of what you’ll be eating will be less regulated, more of what you’ll be eating will be caught with destructive fishing gear,” said Kenny Belov, who owns a seafood company and restaurant in California’s Bay Area.

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In Kodiak, commercial fishing pots have returned to the water this season after officials lifted the two-year ban. The moratorium helped populations, but the quota will only be about a tenth of what it was three seasons ago.

“It’s hard to even consider a plan B when fishing is in my blood. I’m a third-generation fisherman,” Prout said.

For now, it’s a modest lifeline for fishermen who find themselves drifting deeper into the unknown.

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