WASHINGTON,
D.C. – Senator Murkowski spoke to the “Symposium on the Impacts of an
Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations” today in downtown
Washington, D.C. – the culmination of four events casting a spotlight on
Alaska’s prominent role in leveraging America’s status as an Arctic nation.
“I
believe that the pace of change in the Arctic demands that greater attention be
focused on the region,” Murkowski said towards the end of her speech today at
the Navy War Memorial. “The implications of the dynamic changing Arctic for
U.S. security, economic, environmental, and political interests depend on it.”
In
May, Senator Murkowski became the first Member of Congress to attend the Arctic
Council Ministerial Meeting held in Nuuk, Greenland. When she returned
from Greenland, she gave a speech on the U.S. Senate floor, announcing the
United States is “waking up” to the fact it is an Arctic nation. This
past weekend, she addressed the Arctic Imperative Summit in Girdwood, Alaska
where she said that Alaska’s Arctic infrastructure needs should be a national
priority, and that America was falling behind its fellow Arctic nations in
investment in the region.
Murkowski
closed today’s speech with a pledge “I give you all my commitment that I will
do my part – to try to move the Law of the Sea Treaty through the Senate; to
advocate for new ice breakers and infrastructure in the Arctic; to support
Arctic research and to encourage the United States to continue increasing its’
role in the region and with the international Arctic community.”
For
the full text of all of Senator Murkowski’s recent speeches on Arctic Policy,
visit: /public/index.cfm?p=Speeches
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