China Pursuing ‘Strategic Military’ Interests in the Arctic: Pompeo

Chinese paramilitary police border guards train in the snow at Mohe County in China's northeast Heilongjiang province, on the border with Russia, on Dec. 12, 2016. Mohe is the northernmost point in China, with a sub arctic climate where border guards operate in temperatures as low as -32 degrees F. STR/AFP via Getty Images

China’s ruling communist regime seeks to expand into the Arctic region to exploit natural resources, secure trade routes, and garner a military advantage against the United States, according to former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and its leader, Xi Jinping, are putting China on a path toward confrontation with the United States by pursuing strategic objectives in the region, Pompeo said in an interview with the Hudson Institute, a conservative think tank where Pompeo is a distinguished fellow.