ThinkTankWeekly

Homeland Sanctuary Lost: Urgent Actions to Secure the Arctic Flank

Mitchell | 2026-02-22 | defense

Topics: China, Nuclear, Russia, United States

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English Summary

The paper argues that the U.S. homeland faces an acute and growing threat from advanced, long-range missile technologies fielded by Russia and China, with the Arctic identified as the most vulnerable attack corridor. The analysis notes that outdated Cold War-era defense systems are insufficient, as modern threats are far more diverse and difficult to detect than previous adversaries. To secure its northern flank, the U.S. must urgently rebuild its defenses by establishing a modern, integrated enterprise that utilizes diverse air, surface, and space sensors to achieve real-time, multi-domain domain awareness.

中文摘要

本文論述美國本土面臨來自俄羅斯和中國部署的先進長程飛彈技術的嚴峻且日益增長的威脅,並指出北極地區是其最易受攻擊的通道。分析指出,過時的冷戰時期防禦系統已不足以應對現代威脅,因為這些威脅的性質遠比以往的敵對勢力更為多元且難以偵測。為確保其北部邊界安全,美國必須緊急重建其防禦能力,建立一個現代化、整合性的體系,利用多樣化的空中、水面和太空感測器,以實現即時的、多領域域感知能力。

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