紐時賞析／全球暖化…中俄對北極興趣漸增 加拿大升級軍事設備保護

加拿大北部一座小村莊圖克託亞圖克今年9月被拍到的景象。許多住在高緯度北極地區的因紐特社區只能搭機抵達，而當地機場年久失修。（紐約時報）

Canada Moves to Protect Arctic From Threats by Russia and China

加拿大采取行動保護北極防中俄威脅

Citing growing interest by China and Russia in the Arctic as global warming makes the region more accessible, Canada said it would focus on building stronger alliances with other nations in the region, particularly the United States.

加拿大表示，全球暖化使北極地區更容易進入，中國和俄羅斯對此區域興趣漸增，加國將着重在北極地區與其他國家建立更強大的聯盟，特別是美國。

“For many years, Canada has aimed to manage the Arctic and northern regions cooperatively with other states as a zone of low tension,” according to a statement by the Canadian government.

加拿大政府發佈的一份聲明指出：「多年來，加拿大的目標是和其他國家合作管理北極和北部地區，成爲一個低緊張區域。」

But more recent developments, including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, had “shaken the foundations of international cooperation in the Arctic,” the statement said.

聲明表示，但近期事態發展，包括俄羅斯2022年入侵烏克蘭，「已動搖北極地區國際合作基礎」。

Canada has long debated how best to assert control over its vast but very sparsely populated Arctic.

加拿大長期以來一直在討論，如何才能以最好的方式，對其幅員廣闊但人煙卻非常稀少的北極地區行使控制權。

The policy statement calls climate change “the overarching threat” to that control. Warmer temperatures and thinning ice make it increasingly likely that it will soon be possible in the summers for ships to regularly travel from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean by way of an Arctic route known as the Northwest Passage.

這份政策聲明稱氣候變遷是對控制權的「首要威脅」。更溫暖的氣溫和冰層變薄，使船舶很快有可能在夏季經常藉由被稱爲西北航道的北極航線，自太平洋航行至大西洋。

Canada’s government said the country was committed to increasing military spending in the Arctic, including a 5 billion Canadian dollar ($3.6 billion) upgrade of defense systems used by the North American Aerospace Defense Command — a joint operation of the two countries.

加拿大政府表示，該國致力於增加北極地區的軍事支出，包括花費50億加元（36億美元）升級兩國組成北美防空司令部所使用的防空系統。

“It is clear that Russia has no red lines, its designs on the Arctic and its resources are well known,” Mélanie Joly, the foreign minister said. “But what is new is that Russia is increasingly dependent on China because of its war in Ukraine.”

加拿大外交部長趙美蘭表示：「顯然，俄羅斯沒有紅線，該國對北極地區和該地區資源的不軌企圖衆所周知。但新的狀況是，俄羅斯因爲和烏克蘭的戰爭，日益依賴中國。」

A warming Arctic climate is playing havoc in the region. Melting permafrost threatens coastal communities with inundation, and unstable sea ice is limiting the ability of the Inuit, who dominate the region, to hunt.

北極氣候暖化正對該地區造成破壞。永凍土融化讓沿海地區面臨洪水威脅，而不穩固的海冰限制主導該地區的因紐特人狩獵能力。

China has declared its interest in becoming an Arctic power and many experts say that may be partly driven by the prospect of an expansion of mining being made commercially viable by a less icy Arctic.

中國已宣佈有興趣成爲北極強權，而許多專家表示，這可能部分是因爲北極冰層減少，使礦業擴張前景在商業上變得可行。

China, which also has an Arctic cooperation agreement with Russia, regularly sends “dual purpose” ships into the area to conduct scientific research and to collect military intelligence, according to Canada’s government.

加拿大政府指出，中國和俄羅斯也有北極合作協議，定期派遣「雙重用途」船舶進入該地區，進行科學研究並收集軍事情報。

It also listed a number of joint military exercises by China and Russia, as well as Chinese incursions into airspace patrolled by the United States, to underscore how the Arctic is become an increasingly active theater of global competition.

加國也列出中國和俄羅斯進行數場聯合軍演，以及中國侵入美國巡邏的空域，強調北極地區如何成爲日益活躍的全球競爭戰場。

文／Ian Austen　譯／羅方妤