Russian overflights The latest proof cold war is back in the race for World domination in the new world order!

I mentioned yesterday that last week when Russia declared that it had successfully planted their flag at the bottom of the Artic caiming it as Russian territory Russia was disturbed that Canada the US and others dismissed it as a joke saying that is worthless in the 21st Century: Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay dismissed it as a "show by Russia."
However, his assertion that the area is actually Canadian property has raised questions about his understanding of the Arctic file as the flag was planted in international territory. "This isn't the 15th century," the foreign minister told reporters on Aug. 2. "You can't go around the world and just plant flags and say, 'We're claiming this territory.'
Supposedly "There is no threat to Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic ... we're not at all concerned about this mission–basically it's just a show by Russia." But Mr. MacKay went a step beyond, which is where the trouble lay. "The question of sovereignty of the Arctic is not a question," he said. "It's clear. It's our country. It's our property. It's our water."
http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2007/august/8/mackay/

Myself I wasn't so sure as it seems like a scary ratchetting up of the race for future resources and world domination. Well attitudes are changing when recent events are taken into account.
IN RECENT weeks it has been noted that Russian nostalgia for past greatness has been seen stretching from the North Pole to the Mediterranean via the Caucasus. First the Russians planted a flag on the bottom of the Arctic. Then they promised to return to the Mediterranean.
For good measure, a Russian-made bomb fell (but did not explode) into a vegetable field in Georgia. That the three events came close together may be a coincidence. That they all testify to Russia's new assertiveness is not. Then there are the ongoing threats of retargetting missiles, and dropping existing arms treaties because of Bush insisting on putting the missile shield in Poland and Chezhoslovakia.

The incident in Georgia may be the most serious with Georgia vying to join NATO which would really heat up the region. I am talking about the bomb dropped in Georgia. Of course no one did it and the Georgian's are blaming the Russians while the Russians are blaming the Georgians themselve, of course America has cautiously called the strike a "provocation" and the European Union urged all sides to show restraint.
This latest row with Georgia is not the only source of anxiety for its neighbours. A few days ago Russia's naval commander proposed "to restore its permanent presence" in the Mediterranean, using the Baltic and Black Sea fleets. For years a Russian naval base in Syria has been standing empty. The return of their ships to Syria is a dream of Russia's admirals and a nightmare for Israel, which fears renewed Russian co-operation with Syria.
I heard last week that Russian ships were off the coast of Syria and one has to be concerned about that knowing what Bush is doing in the middle east. However in my mind Russia's Mediterranean plans pale in comparison with its audacious foray into the Arctic where they collected soil samples and planted the Russian flag two and a half miles below the sea. The official purpose of this first-ever manned mission was "to prove that the North Pole is an extension of the Russian coastal shelf." Geologists say the region could have big oil, gas and mineral reserves.
http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9622181

Knowing that the Artic features prominently in Russian Imperial mythology and the rising desire for Russia to regain prominance as a world power you have to be very concerned about this and Canada now is. Canada's prime minister has begun a three-day trip to the Arctic in an effort to assert sovereignty over the region a week after Russia symbolically staked a claim to the North Pole by sending submarines.
Five countries -- Canada, Russia, the United States, Norway and Denmark -- are competing to secure subsurface rights to the Arctic seabed. One study by the U.S. Geological Survey estimates the Arctic has as much as 25 percent of the world's undiscovered oil and gas. PM Harper, who has pledged to spend billions defending Canada's sovereignty over the Arctic, is expected to announce the location of a planned military deep water port later in the week.
"Economic development -- unleashing the resource-based potential of the North, environmental protection -- protecting the unique Northern environment, national sovereignty -- protecting our land, airspace and territorial waters." Last month, Harper announced that six to eight new patrol ships will be built to guard the Northwest Passage sea route in the Arctic, which the United States insists does not belong to Canada.
Canadian PM vows to defend Arctic - CNN.com*

U.S. Ambassador David Wilkins has criticized Harper's promise to defend the Arctic, calling the Northwest Passage "neutral waters." Now today we have further proof of the return to the cold war and none of this stands good for the successful future of the world. Two Russian bombers flew thousands of miles across Pacific Ocean waters to the vicinity of Guam, site of a major U.S. military base, where U.S. jets intercepted them, the Russian air force said Thursday. The flights renewed a type of military gamesmanship that has been largely dormant in the Pacific since the Cold War ended.
"It was always a tradition for our long-range aircraft to fly far over the ocean, where pilots met American airplanes and visually greeted them," Maj. Gen. Pavel Androsov told reporters Thursday. "On Wednesday, we renewed that tradition." The maneuver was Moscow's latest display of a resurgent armed forces after years of decline in the 1990s. Restoring the luster of the military has been a key element of President Vladimir Putin's effort to renew Russian pride, which collapsed along with the Soviet Union.
Russia Says U.S. Intercepted 2 of Its Bombers Over Pacific

This is all very troubling as we watch the ratchetting up of tensions around the world as we try to move into the future. The return to the cold war, the renewed arms race,The increased militanism around the world is tenuous but throw all the recent developments in with what is shaping up to be a fight over the Arctic and its resources which will only serve to ecologically destroy another very important part of the Ocean's and world's ecosystem in what is increasingly appearing

James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
www.anaveragepatriot.com