It is \u201cridiculous\u201d that Moscow has 48 vessels while Washington only has one, the president has said<\/p>\n
President Donald Trump has admitted the US is far behind Russia in icebreaker capacity, noting that his country has only one vessel of this type compared to dozens operated by Moscow.
\nIcebreakers are specialized vessels built to break through ice-covered waters, allowing ships to operate in otherwise inaccessible regions such as the Arctic.
\n\u201cYou know, we only have one in the whole country,\u201d Trump said in a call with military service members on Thursday. \u201cRussia has 48, and we have one, and that\u2019s just ridiculous.\u201d
\nTrump said the US is working to narrow the gap by jointly building 11 vessels with Finland.
\n\u201cWe\u2019re doing them in conjunction with Finland and some other people, and they make\u2026 90% of the icebreakers, so they have great expertise,\u201d he said, without clarifying who the \u201cother people\u201d were. Trump added that he expects the vessels to be delivered \u201cvery soon\u201d and plans to order 11 more afterward.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Putin launches world\u2019s most powerful nuclear-powered icebreaker (VIDEO)<\/p>\n
Trump first announced that Washington would purchase 11 Finnish-built icebreakers in October, during a meeting with President Alexander Stubb. The agreement is reportedly valued at $6.1 billion, with the first delivery expected in 2028, and was framed as strengthening America\u2019s Arctic presence and helping \u201creassert US maritime dominance.\u201d
\nGlobally, Russia leads in icebreaker capacity, operating the world\u2019s largest fleet. It currently has over 60 icebreakers and ice-capable vessels, supporting rapid Arctic development and maintaining shipping\u00a0along the Northern Sea Route. In March, President Vladimir Putin called the Arctic a zone of \u201cenormous potential\u201d for trade and development.
\nRussia is also the only country with multiple nuclear-powered heavy icebreakers, including those of the Project 22220 class \u2013 the largest in the world, capable of breaking through ice up to three meters thick.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Breaking the ice: How Russia\u2019s nuclear fleet outpaces rivals<\/p>\n
Amid improving US-Russia ties driven by joint Ukraine peace efforts, Russian officials have highlighted the benefits of renewed Arctic cooperation. President Putin said Russian companies have both the capital and technology for major joint ventures \u2013 including projects in Alaska and the Arctic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It is \u201cridiculous\u201d that Moscow has 48 vessels while Washington only has one, the president has said President Donald Trump has admitted the US is far behind Russia in icebreaker…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23301,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23300","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t