By Johan Ahlander and Tom Little
KEFLAVIK, Iceland, March 4 (Reuters) – Swedish fighter jets are patrolling the skies around Iceland for the first time, as NATO allies try to show both U.S. President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that they are serious about protecting the Arctic.
Sweden has sent six of its Saab Gripen fighter jets, the crown jewel of its defence industry, as part of NATO mission Arctic Sentry.
The mission is seeking to strengthen NATO’s presence in the strategically important Arctic region as part of an effort to defuse severe tensions within the alliance prompted by Trump’s push for the U.S. to acquire Greenland.
Trump has forced NATO allies to sharply increase military spending, including in the Arctic. He has been particularly unimpressed by Denmark’s military presence on Greenland, which he mockingly described as “two dog sleds”.
‘WARNING CHAIN FOR ATTACKS’
The Swedish fighters are mainly on the lookout for Russian long-range bombers that can take off from air bases on the Kola Peninsula, which is home to Russia’s Northern Fleet and also has nuclear missile silos.
“Iceland as well as all of the Arctic would be important (in case of a conflict) because that’s the warning chain for attacks against the U.S. or Canada across the Arctic,” said Major General Frode Arnfinn Kristoffersen, deputy chief of staff, operations, at NATO Joint Force Command Norfolk.
“Russia sees the Arctic as vital to becoming a great power and has also built up new Arctic bases and opened up former Soviet military sites, including deep-water ports and airfields,” he said.
Russia has repeatedly dismissed claims it is seeking to take over Greenland, or is a threat in the Arctic, saying they are false “horror stories” made up by Western leaders to justify their own behaviour.
HARSH ARCTIC CONDITIONS
Keflavik Air Base, built during World War Two and up until 2006 an American base, is home to the NATO air policing missions that have been done periodically since 2008.
The cold and windy conditions are the same as those on Greenland and the rest of the Arctic.
“We have experiences from operating in this kind of harsh environment…so for us, it’s quite natural to also be able to operate here in Iceland,” said Major General Jonas Wikman, Sweden’s Air Force chief.
The JAS 39 Gripen is a fourth-generation light single-engine supersonic multi-role aircraft, meaning it can do air-to-ground, air-to-surface, and air-to-air operations.
“It’s perfectly suitable for this weather. It’s built in Sweden for the Swedish climate, and this is basically what we have back in Sweden,” said Lieutenant Colonel Robin Arvidsson, fighter pilot and squadron commander in the Swedish Air Force.
It has a low logistical footprint and can be refuelled and rearmed by one officer and four conscripts in as little as 10 minutes.
DANGEROUS BUILD-UP
While NATO allies have rushed to increase the alliance’s presence in the Arctic, some analysts and politicians have questioned the rationale behind the build-up, saying Russia does not currently pose a threat to Greenland.
“This is very dangerous because it leads to an action-reaction cycle,” said Pavel Devyatkin, senior associate at Washington-based think tank, The Arctic Institute.
“There’s a very high chance of an accidental incident, of an escalation,” he said. “These moves from Sweden and from NATO are basically appeasing President Trump,” he said.
(Reporting by Johan Ahlander and Tom Little; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
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