The USCGC Polar Sea (WAGB-11) has been deactivated for nearly a decade, while the Polar Star (WAGB-10) is aging and in persistent need of maintenance. That leaves the Coast Guard with one fairly reliable medium icebreaker, the USCGC Healy (WAGB-20), which is 22 years old.
Yet the Coast Guard is planning to build three heavy icebreakers and three medium icebreakers over the next few years. The first heavy polar security cutter is slated for construction in 2021 at the Pascagoula, Mississippi, shipyard, and would join the Coast Guard fleet in 2024. The potential contract for all three heavy icebreakers would come in at around $1.9 billion dollars. However, it is likely the cost will be far more than that projection, while appropriations for new vessels can also be reduced or withdrawn based on evolving priorities within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
In the meantime, the threats of illegal migration and narcotics trafficking are rapidly increasing. These corrosive scourges adversely impact U.S. coasts and the southern border. In addition, the Coast Guard must maintain readiness for environmental emergencies and search-and-rescue operations. Confronting these crises are the core missions of the Coast Guard, along with a few peripheral mandates, yet precious resources are spent on polar deployments for research.
One can fathom an occasional scientific Antarctic deployment, since the South Pole has become internationalized. By contrast, the northern borders of Canada, Russia, and Scandinavia touch the Arctic region. These nations possess an adequate number of icebreakers to keep the lanes of global commerce open. Certainly, China has ambitions to exert its influence over this route in the spheres of resource development and trade.
Indeed, China and Russia have integrated icebreakers into their naval fleets, so it would be reasonable for the U.S. blue-water Navy to patrol Alaska and the Arctic region and build its own icebreakers. As astounding as this may sound, it makes good sense because the Navy has the ability to project power with ships and submarines on a global scale. It also has the budget and support systems to keep the peace, deter adversaries, and support U.S. allies, while the Coast Guard primarily exercises law enforcement actions.
In this scenario, the Coast Guard would continue its icebreaking duties on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway with the icebreaker Healy and USCGC Mackinaw (WLLB-30). A strategic shift away from the Poles would increase the Coast Guard’s capability and capacity to focus on critical duties directly related to national security. This shift also would make it feasible to launch modernized cutters into the Coast Gaurd fleet, ramp up partnering operations with the Drug Enforcement Administration and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and also increase purposeful training.
If the Coast Guard was housed in the Department of Defense and had a higher profile, this would be a different discussion, but for now that is out of the question since the Coast Guard plays a critical role in the Department of Homeland Security. The key word here is “homeland.” That ought to translate into guardianship of the coasts and waterways of the United States, with less time devoted to long-distance enterprises that offer a minimal return on investment.
Currently, far too many gaps in U.S. coastal defenses allow illicit activities to accelerate because the Coast Guard is stretched to the breaking point. Although this is a period of transition for the agency as it phases in new platforms to stay abreast of U.S. competitors, funding should either increase or its missions should be realistic.
If the Coast Guard remains focused on protecting U.S. coasts and the U.S. exclusive economic zone , it could fulfill its duties more effectively. The bottom line is that the Coast Guard should scale back its global engagements and stick to its other core statutory-mandated missions.
For Semper Paratus to move beyond a mere slogan, the Coast Guard should steer clear of the Poles, decommission the two heavy icebreakers, and redirect resources toward coastal operations to better secure the homeland. As the smallest armed force, the Coast Guard must proactively roll back the nefarious reach of transnational human smuggling and narcoterrorism for the sake of national security. Leave the Poles to the Navy and to private sector research-and-development firms.
