[1] China has also focused on developing military projection capabilities of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) that would extend into the Arctic region.
[5] Early Chinese media discussion of foreign nuclear missiles over Svalbard broadened in the 1980s to the Arctic's mineral, fishing, and transportation potential.
"[19][20] Meanwhile, the debate among scholars, media and the public is still ongoing as to what is China's place in the Arctic.
[14] China's near-term Arctic focus is on liquified natural gas, which the region may have 30% of undiscovered supplies of.
[14] China is engaged in research on "Arctic geology, geography, ..., hydrology, meteorology, sea ice, biology, ecology, geophysics and marine chemistry.
It also focuses on constructing "cooperative research (observation) stations" as well as making the icy waters easier to navigate via things like icebreakers.
[4] Xue Long or "Snow Dragon" is one such icebreaker vessel that conducts sundry geoscientific research.
[4] It is a joint Chinese-Russian initiative that was launched in 2018[16] as the "Polar Silk Road", a name first mentioned by a Russian minister at a 2011 meeting.
International sanctions during the Russo-Ukrainian War caused Russia to seek Chinese technological and financial aid to develop the Yamal-Nenets region.
[5] China has the largest foreign embassy in Reykjavik, anticipating Iceland becoming an important transshipment hub.
[22] Chinese Arctic experts have pointed out the limitations of Arctic sea routes, including harsh conditions, more icebergs due to melting of Greenland's icecap, higher insurance premiums, lack of infrastructure and shallow depths.