Ever since the other members of the Arctic Council announced they would not cooperate with Russia in the wake of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine even though Moscow is currently its chairman in office, there has been talk that Russia would exit the Council and even form its own that would include China and other friendly powers (windowoneurasia2.blogspot.com/2022/06/moscow-may-create-alternative-arctic.html).
This week, that talk has intensified following the appearance of an article in the Wall Street Journal arguing that the US to should seek the return of Wrangel Island which is now under Russian control. (For that article, see wsj.com/articles/russia-occupies-american-land-wrangle-island-arctic-soviet-russia-putin-lenin-national-security-11667597158; for initial Russian reaction, see stoletie.ru/rossiya_i_mir/v_arktike_rastet_naprazhennost_960.htm.)
Now, Elena Pustovoytova, a…
