Shadowing Practice: Why the world's superpowers are racing to control the Arctic - BBC World Service - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic.
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What happens in the Arctic does not stay in the Arctic.
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There are things happening in the Arctic now that would have been unthinkable 20 years ago.
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This is the region warming faster than anywhere else on Earth.
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And as the climate changes, so does its strategic importance.
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We need Greenland for national security and even international security.
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Major powers are turning their eyes north.
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Looking for resources, new routes through the ice, and a way to strengthen their position on the global stage.
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A lot of countries have come out with Arctic strategies.
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It's part of how the international order is being challenged.
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Here are five reasons why the Arctic has become one of the world's most hotly contested regions.
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To understand this, we need to look at the world in a different way.
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Far from just a frozen ocean, eight countries have territory in the Arctic Circle.
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The United States, Canada, Greenland, which is a semi-autonomous part of Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.
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During the Cold War between the US and Soviet Union, going over the pole was a potential route for missile strikes.
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Both countries expanded their military operations, with the US establishing a base in the north of Greenland.
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But in 1987, with the Cold War coming to an end, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev proposed the scaling down of military activity in the Arctic.
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What Gorbachev was trying to articulate was a vision where the Arctic parties would focus on areas where they could find common cause.
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In the years that followed, the eight Arctic nations formed the Arctic Council and agreed to work together on research and environmental protection.
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Arctic and Non-arctic Arctic states opened research bases with countries like China, India and South Korea investigating how the region impacts weather patterns thousands of kilometres away in Asia.
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The Arctic has had this reputation of being sort of an exceptional place of peace and cooperation.
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That narrative continued until Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
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In 2022, Russia reopened the Cold War's fault lines.
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Within months, Finland and Sweden applied to join NATO, the Western military alliance.
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The Arctic map became Russia on one side and NATO members on the other.
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The border between Norway, Finland and Russia is effectively a front line for Russia and NATO.
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The Arctic saw direct conflict when a Russian air base in the Arctic Circle was attacked by Ukrainian drones.
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The region is critical to Russia's military.
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Most of its nuclear capability is based there.
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Russia has reopened dozens of Soviet era bases and used Arctic waters to test hypersonic cruise missiles.
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Russian and American fighter jets have come into close proximity in the skies near Alaska.
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And the West is also expanding its Arctic presence.
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2024 saw NATO's biggest drills in the region since the Cold War.
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The US Army has reactivated a specialised Arctic force in Alaska, and President Trump has proposed something bolder.
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We need Greenland for national security and international security.
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So I think we'll go as far as we have to go.
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We need Greenland, and the world needs us to have Greenland.
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The US still has a military base in Greenland, and the response to Mr. Trump's suggestion was clear.
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Polls suggest most Greenlanders don't want to be part of the US.
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The majority want to be independent.
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For Donald Trump, a strong presence in the Arctic is key to countering the partnership between Russia and China, which the two countries describe as a friendship without limits.
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You don't even need binoculars.
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You look outside, you have China ships all over the place.
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You have Russian ships all over the place.
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We're not letting that happen. Russian and Chinese Coast Guard ships have carried out joint patrols in the Arctic Ocean, and bombers from both countries have flown together near Alaska.
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It's the first time that we've seen these two countries fly together like that.
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The worry is that some of those drills, exercises, patrols might generate a risky escalation, a miscalculation.
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China says its actions are about deepening cooperation with Russia and aren't aimed at third parties.
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However, this relationship has tensions of its own.
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There's been a danger that Russia's fully aware of is that the more and more it collaborates with China, the more it's giving China legitimacy to act as a very powerful near-Arctic state.
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China describes itself as a near-Arctic state, despite being 1400km from the Arctic Circle.
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In 2018, it launched a range of investment projects it called the Polar Silk Road.
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But it's hit road blocks in communities wary of being over reliant on China.
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They want to be a polar superpower.
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We want a relationship to China, but we do not want to be dependent on China.
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There's no question that it was trying to sort of have a significant impact in the Arctic, but it hasn't come to fruition.
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Most of China's economic success in the Arctic has come from partnering with Russia on projects like this natural gas extraction field.
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And shipping this gas has been made easier by the Arctic Ocean's melting sea ice.
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This was how much there was in summer 1979, and this is in 2024.
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A reduction of 2.6 million km², which is roughly the size of Argentina.
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Many see this as an opportunity to exploit the Arctic for shipping during the summer months.
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Of the three potential routes, the only one currently viable is along Russia's northern coast, known as the Northern Sea Route.
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There's been the hope that more and more traffic could bypass the usage of the Suez Canal and shave thousands of miles off shipping time and distance.
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97 cargo voyages were made using the Northern Sea Route in 2024, mostly exports from Russia to China.
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But compared to Suez, with 13000 ships passing through every year, it's a long way from being a competitive option.
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The Arctic Ocean is frozen for most of the year.
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Even in summer it's an unpredictable environment.
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You're going to have a situation where there are very small windows of time where there could be the potential to transit, and that doesn't offer the certainty the shipping industry needs.
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While questions remain about shipping, there's something else the melting ice may reveal.
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There's been this narrative of the last frontier of sort of rich access to resources that haven't been accessible in the past.
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It's estimated that 30% of the world's undiscovered gas and 13% of undiscovered oil is there.
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Minerals too, particularly in Greenland.
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If the US were to gain access to Greenland's resources, it could significantly reduce our dependence on foreign suppliers, particularly China, which currently operates a virtual monopoly on the rare earth market.
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But getting these resources is far from simple.
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You're dealing with environments that are remote, expensive to operate in, lacking infrastructure, and where there is very little skilled labour close by.
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Despite this, global interest in the region, and what further ice melt might reveal, remains.
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And that could introduce further competition to this already contested region.
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15 years ago you would have said the Arctic is a region best characterised by high north, low tension.
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Now we should adapt that slogan to high north, high tension.
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About This Lesson
In this lesson, learners will engage with the pressing global issue of Arctic geopolitics discussed in the video titled "Why the world's superpowers are racing to control the Arctic" by BBC World Service. The content focuses on how the changing climate is shifting strategic interests among nations, particularly in the Arctic region. As you practice your English speaking skills, you will learn to convey complex ideas related to international relations and climate change, which are essential topics in today’s interconnected world. This lesson is tailored to help you improve your English pronunciation and fluency while discussing critical global issues.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Arctic Circle - A region defined by its geographical coordinates, encompassing eight countries.
- Geopolitics - The study of the effects of geography on international politics and relations.
- National security - The protection of a nation's borders and territories against invasion or control by foreign powers.
- Military operations - Activities conducted by armed forces to achieve specific objectives.
- Cultural sovereignty - The right of a nation to govern itself, focusing on cultural identity and heritage.
- Cooperation - Working together towards common goals, especially in international contexts.
- Climate change - Long-term alteration of temperature and typical weather patterns in a place.
- Strategic importance - The value of an area in terms of its benefits to national defense and global influence.
Practice Tips
To get the most out of your English speaking practice, consider following these tips while shadowing the content of the video:
- Listen Actively: Pay close attention to the speaker's intonation and pacing. The topics covered are complex, so focus on both the content and how it is delivered.
- Repeat and Imitate: As you hear phrases related to the Arctic's significance, try to repeat them immediately. Imitate the speaker's tone to make your pronunciation clearer, aiding your shadow speech technique.
- Record Yourself: After shadowing, record yourself discussing similar topics. This allows you to compare your pronunciation and fluency with the original speaker's performance.
- Break It Down: Work on one section of the transcript at a time. This will help you manage the vocabulary and ensure you truly grasp each segment before moving on.
- Use a Shadowing Site: Consider using any available resources that help you practice, focusing on segments of the transcript. This will enhance your English speaking practice efficiently.
By consistently incorporating these techniques into your practice regimen, you’ll likely see substantial improvements in your English pronunciation and overall fluency, allowing you to discuss sophisticated topics with confidence.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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