Coast Guard crew monitor Chinese vessels in Arctic

Audio By Carbonatix

(The Center Square) – Coast Guard crew are monitoring Chinese-flagged vessels in the Arctic as border security efforts remain a Trump administration priority. 

The Coast Guard also is working with Canadian military to expand maritime defense in the Arctic after U.S. and Canadian partnerships are building arctic cutters in Texas.

During their last nearly four-month-long mission, Coast Guard Cutter Munro (WMSL 755) crew operated in the Coast Guard Arctic District. They were deployed to control, secure and defend the northernmost maritime approaches in the U.S. and also strengthened defenses with international partners. 

While on patrol in the Arctic, Cutter Munro crew through Operation Frontier Sentinel monitored three Chinese-flagged research vessels operating in and around the U.S. Arctic waters to ensure they complied with international maritime law. By July, the crew had monitored two Chinese-flagged vessels, The Center Square reported. 

“The Arctic is a demanding maritime environment that can test any crew and vessel,” Cutter Munro’s commanding officer, Capt. Adam Disque, said. “We were proud to sustain U.S. presence in the region to safeguard our Arctic coastline and reinforce a rules-based order in the High North.” 

The crew also conducted combined exercises with the Royal Canadian Navy, including joint maneuvering and shared domain awareness in polar waters, the Coast Guard said. 

Through Operation Tundra Merlin, Cutter Munro crew integrated into strategic Western Hemisphere defense operations, working with the U.S. Department of War and Canadian Armed Forces. They tested multi-domain homeland defense architecture, integrating command-and-control networks and response readiness in northern maritime corridors, the Coast Guard said.

“We also strengthened our enduring partnership with Canadian counterparts, advancing shared domain awareness and coordination across the remote region,” Disque said.

Cutter Munro served as the frontline guardian of the $6 billion Alaskan commercial fishery industry. Working with maritime law enforcement teams, crew inspected commercial fishing vessels operating in the Bering Sea to ensure compliance with federal safety regulations and fisheries laws to preserve vital fish stocks, it said.

Cutter Munro crew recently returned to their Base Alameda homeport on Coast Guard Island after a 112-day Alaska patrol covering more than 23,000 nautical miles across the Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean. One of the largest Coast Guard bases on the west coast, it’s located on an island in the Oakland Estuary between Oakland and Alameda, California.

Their efforts are part of an expanded border security mission advanced by the Trump administration. With a record $25 billion investment in the Coast Guard through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, $3.5 billion was awarded to Canadian Davie Defense’s American subsidiary to build polar ice cutters, The Center Square reported. Three are being built in Texas.  

To support their efforts, American, Finnish and Canadian leaders joined an Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE Pact), a trilateral initiative to advance shipbuilding and Arctic defense, including those being built in Texas. 

Commissioned in 2017, Cutter Munro is one of four 418-foot Legend-class national security cutters homeported in Alameda, California. The cutter is named after World War II hero Signalman 1st Class Douglas Munro of Washington state. 

Munro was the only Coast Guard crewman to receive the Medal of Honor for his heroism at Point Cruz, Guadalcanal, on Sept. 27, 1942. He was killed after rescuing nearly 500 Marines under heavy enemy fire.  

In May 1943, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt presented the Medal of Honor to his parents, James and Edith Munro. Just a few hours later, his mother swore an oath and joined the Coast Guard. She went through boot camp at age 48 and earned a commission in the SPARS, the Coast Guard’s female branch. She ran the Coast Guard Barracks in Seattle and was discharged two years later with the rank of Lieutenant.