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Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem on Tuesday announced a strategic partnership with Canada and Finland to build nearly a dozen cutting-edge icebreaker ships to help defend the Arctic against rival powers such as China.
Noem signed a letter of intent on what’s been dubbed the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE Pact) alongside Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman and Finland’s Minister of Economic Affairs Sakari Puisto at DHS headquarters in Washington, D.C.
“To thrive in the Arctic, we need icebreakers,” Noem said, adding that the ICE Pact will help power the economies of the three countries and strengthen the collective Arctic defense.
Noem called the Arctic “the world’s last, most wild frontier,” where the U.S. and its allies, as well as their adversaries, are competing for strategic positions and the rich natural resources within the region.
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Noem said soon after the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Storis, a polar icebreaker, was commissioned earlier this year, Chinese ships began to openly operate in and near U.S. Arctic waters.
“Their goal was clear. They wanted to test America’s resolve,” Noem said of China. “The Coast Guard responded immediately. In fact, we deployed the Cutter Healy and a fleet of air assets to the scene, and we escorted those intruders out of our waters. Our rapid response sent a clear message: Under President Trump’s leadership, we will defend our sovereignty.”
Noem said the U.S. currently has 11 cutters under contract to be built within the next several years. The first four will be built with the partnerships of Canada and Finland, while Noem said the remainder will be built in the U.S. after it rebuilds its shipyards.
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The initiative will also help train an American workforce in the specialized skills necessary in shipbuilding to produce cutting-edge vessels more quickly and efficiently.
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“Finland and Canada are essential to the success of that mission, and American shipbuilders are some of the most innovative, dedicated and hardworking individuals in the world,” Noem said.
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