And it’s not hard to see why: the Arctic contains vast deposits of untapped fossil fuels, it is of huge strategic importance militarily and represents an emerging trade route between Asia and the west to rival the Suez canal. But Russia is not the only country with designs on the Arctic. Canada and Denmark have also staked a claim and, in military terms, Nato is bearing down on all sides. Yet Vladimir Putin is closer than any of his predecessors to gaining control of the polar region. Josh Toussaint-Strauss explores how Russia has managed to circumvent the west and further entrench its claim to the Arctic.