NATO eyes Arctic mission amid rising Russian, Chinese activity

Описание: (9 Feb 2026)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Luxembourg, Luxembourg - 9 February 2026
1. Various of NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexus Grynkewich reviewing guard of honor
2. General Alexus Grynkewich posing for photo op and handshake with Luxembourg defence minister, Yuriko Backes
3. Various of meeting between General Alexus Grynkewich and minister, Backes
4. SOUNDBITE (English) General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe:
"We did talk about Greenland. We talked about in the context of the Arctic and the increasing need for the alliance to pay attention to security in Arctic, given the continued Russian presence and increasing Chinese presence that's there. I think it's been reported widely that we're doing some planning now on a new Arctic mission called Arctic Sentry. That has not kicked off yet, but we're in the final stages of planning for that enhanced vigilance activity. I'll actually go back to my headquarters later tonight, and tomorrow I'll take a brief from our commander of Joint Force Command Norfolk, who's in charge of this. He'll present that to me tomorrow. And if the brief goes well, and we've met all the ticks, then we might have something that we can announce later this week on how we're moving forward on that. But this was one of the two areas that our secretary-general discussed with President Trump when they were in Davos. So I think it's an essential pillar of the way forward for Arctic security, and looking forward to contribute to that."
5. Mid shot of presser
6. SOUNDBITE (English) General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe:
"So, we agreed to re-establish a communication line, and we're in the process of getting that re-establishing going. So my only communication with the Russian military so far has been with the negotiators that the Russians have sent forward into our military working group. I would tell you, within those working groups, we're having very constructive and productive conversations about how we'll move forward on the Ukraine peace agreement and everyone I know is hoping that we're able to achieve that."
7. Wide shot of presser
8. SOUNDBITE (English) General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe:
"The long-range strikes are probably the story of the winter with Russia attacking critical national infrastructure in Ukraine, causing significant power outages. The Ukrainians have talked about what the impacts of that are. But again, it's a brutal conflict, we all are working to achieve President Trump's vision of peace in Ukraine so that we can move on."
9. General Alexus Grynkewich and minister, Backes leaving the podium
STORYLINE:
NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexus G. Grynkewich, said on Monday during his visit to Luxembourg, that the alliance is planning for a possible Arctic mission as it seeks to strengthen security in the High North amid increasing Russian and Chinese activity.

Grynkewich said, the mission which is called Arctic Sentry has not yet kicked off and that it is in its final stages of its planning.

He also added that the United States and Russia have agreed to re-establish a military-to-military communication channel, marking a limited but significant step toward renewed contact amid the war in Ukraine.

He said his contact with Russian forces has so far been limited to negotiators assigned to a military working group, describing the discussions as “constructive and productive” and focused on next steps toward a peace agreement on Ukraine.



AP video shot by: Mark Carlson







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