Earlier this year when President Donald Trump brought back an old idea from his first term about the potential of acquiring Greenland, it put the focus on the Arctic and the strategic value of the region not only to the United States but other nations as well.
But President Trump is not the first president to look at Greenland and its strategic importance to the United States in the Arctic.
A new book written by Case Western Reserve University world-affairs and political science professor, Dr. Kathryn Lavelle, explores the long-history of U.S. involvement in the Arctic by focusing on how economic, scientific, and strategic interests interact there, rather than just considering one or another aspect of foreign policy.
"Reluctant Conquest: American Wealth, Power, and Science in the Arctic" challenges the conventional viewpoint that the U.S. is NOT a significant power in the region. It takes the reader through the nation's historic ties to the Arctic dating back to the founding of the country through to the present day.
Kathryn Lavelle is the Ellen and Dixon Long professor in World Affairs in the Department of Political Science at the College of Arts and Sciences at Case Western Reserve University.
Guest:
-Kathryn Lavelle, Author "Reluctant Conquest: American Wealth, Power, and Science in the Arctic"