Swati+and+Keren+1NC+-+Russia+DA

**Sino-Russo coop in arctic now**
The Arctic is important to AND
 * Baker 15 ** (Benjamin David Baker is an editorial assistant at The Diplomat. He is currently serving as a reserve officer in the Norwegian Armed Forces and has previously worked and published at the International Law and Policy Institute and the Norwegian Defense Research Establishment, “Sino-Russian Relations in the Arctic: Thawing Out or Freezing Up?,” 10/8/15, Date Accessed: 6/20/16, [], sabz)

financing the pipeline itself.

**US Arctic expansion angers Russia—any move is perceived as a challenge to Russian regional dominance**

 * Depledge 15 **—Duncan Depledge is an Associate Fellow of Royal United Services Institute, where previously worked on the Climate Change and Security Programme. In this role, he focused primarily on analysing how climate change is impacting global and regional dynamics of security and geopolitics, especially in the Arctic, “How Russia Could Annex the Arctic,” 3/23/15, http://www.defenseone.com/threats/2015/03/how-russia-could-annex-arctic/108229/

Tensions have increased a notch AND

with little regard for the right to innocent passage.

**US-Russia relations collapse causes nuclear war**

 * Colby 16 ** (Elbridge Colby is the Robert M. Gates Senior Fellow at the Center for a New American Security, “The Role of Nuclear Weapons in the U.S.-Russian Relationship,” This publication is from the Task Force on U.S. Policy Toward Russia, Ukraine, and Eurasia project, 2/26/16, Date Accessed: 6/20/16, [], sabz)

At first glance, the reality of mutual vulnerability AND

for decisive effect or lose them.13