While the initial cost of harvesting the resources from space will be difficult, the economic potential knows no bounds. The more that is invested into mining asteroids the more advanced and cheap the sector will grow.

Space if properly used has the ability to give great plenty to all on Earth, though if missed use could bankrupt us all. The value within space is incalculable but the ability to tap into those resources will be the most costly thing that humanity has ever done. As @David Broughton has said before, no country will be able to achieve their goals without intense innovation. At the moment nations are chomping at the bit to be able tap into those markets. China sees space as another sector for them to spread more control over. While the United States last year announced that it no longer sees space as a "global commons" and that “Americans should have the right to engage in commercial exploration, recovery, and use of resources in outer space, consistent with applicable law." For more on that here is the link, https://spacenews.com/white-house-looks-for-international-support-for-space-resource-rights/

While China does see space as another area for them to harvest for resources, there are also US companies that are advancing into the space sector. While NASA may not have plans to begin harvesting resources from outer space, that does not mean that there are not US companies that are planning on doing the same thing.

I have read this document multiple times before and reading it for IAA was a very interesting re-read for myself. If there is one part of the treaty that I would highlight it would be Article 2, Outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means. Space has always been the final frontier and as nations expand into space the powers of nations within outer space will be questioned. The average time to reach the Moon from Earth is three days, the same amount of time it takes a cargo ship to deliver from China to the UK. It would take around seven months to travel to Mars and there is enough delay between Earth and Mars that any telecommunication would be very ineffective. If the situation within the South China Sea or the Arctic is an example of what happens when great powers enter international territory, then we may see great powers changing this agreement at some point. Even if nations do not claim that they own territory, what is the difference if the United States builds a city on the Moon.

@David Broughton The United States is not one of the powers that needs concede to China but what about other powers in South East Asia, the Middle East, or even Africa have countries that see a lot of value in space, or at least in working with China on such large projects like their space programs. China's space program may not be at the level of United States at the moment, but the agency was only formed in 1993. There is also a far larger possibility of China and Russia working together on future projects, if China and Russia can work together in the cold of the Arctic then they can probably work together in the cold of space.

@David Broughton In the future I could see China use access to their Lunar Base as a way to get certain concessions out of smaller countries. With the value of having access to the moon and other orbital platforms, China's value to other nations grow exponentially.

I agree that banning weapons from space is one of most needed things for the future of space. China's work in space while great for the future of science, does need to held with scrutiny before this comes.

After reading the document I think one of the most interesting section was part 13 covering the infrastructure for Russia in the Arctic. The more that countries like Russia builds infrastructure in the Arctic the more that it gains a solid foothold in the Arctic. China is doing the same as they are building infrastructure in the region as well. China and Russia already have the plans for collaborating in the future for building infrastructure in the region. If the United States has any hope of response in the Arctic it will need to increase its spending within the Arctic. Overall it is interesting to see how Russia's and China's relationship will develop in the Arctic and from how Russia is preparing their future plans will be hard to manuever around.

Norway is a very precocious situation with their position on the Arctic. With the many advantages of being around the Arctic it also brings the cost of having to deal with the neighbors like Russia and have to deal with the expansion of powers like China into the Arctic space. While many of the things that Norway is doing is helpful for them right now, such as labeling China as a "non-Arctic" state, but will it be able to hold up what it claims. The People's Liberation Army Navy has already been expanding China's claims in the South China Sea and as infrastructure in the Arctic continues to be built expect the PLAN and their aggressive mindset to follow.

The People's Liberation Army Navy's continued involvement into the Arctic will continue to be some of the largest contention in the Arctic. The question is whether there will be any force within the Arctic that is willing to work against PLAN movement in the Arctic and who is willing to work with Beijing in the future when it comes to their presence in Arctic?

I agree that others will have to stop China, while PLAN aggression needs to be watched it would be very interesting to see other Arctic powers work with China and Russia. The question is how will other Arctic powers like Norway be able to combat powers like China and Russia without it being prohibitively expensive? While there are foreign partnerships and defense treaties is there a future where the worry of Chinese or Russian expansion does not require a whole host of countries to combat their expansions.

The question is whether the US Navy is willing to allow for the PLAN to act as agressively to them as they would other powers?

The question is whether this plan of action is enough for the United States in the Arctic compared to the plans of other nations.

Today's article was quite interesting especially when it was covering US future capabilities in the Arctic region and it covered infrastructure first. The ability for the United States to build itself into the Arctic would grant it the superior status in the region as it would be able to keep forces in the Arctic long term. The question is if the United States will be able to out build the competition. The People's Liberation Army Navy(PLAN) has already begun the plans for construction of shipyards in the Arctic to be completed in the next five years and they are working with Russia on other economic infrstructure in the region. The PLAN is now the largest naval force in the world and is modernizing quickly. If the United States is hoping for a future in the Arctic then it will require a quick change of pace to follow its rival's trajectories.

China is modernizing its military, the question is how how fast will it be able to modernize its navy before the United States can increase its presence.

We have seen China increase their amount of world wide naval presence and it would not be shocking to see them increase their presence in Arctic. The question is how much are they willing to move resources out of the Indo-Pacific.

Today's document is very interesting. With China's growing monetary interests within the arctic will lead to an increase in Chinese military presence. While there is a possibility of Russia-China relations going sour in the arctic, it is also the possibility that they will work together. While the United States does not have good relations with either power this could be a situation for the United States to better its position with them. The United States will either have to convince the powers in the arctic to play nice or be aggressive enough to force fairness in the arctic.

While the United States does not have good relations with either Russia or China, this could push for the three powers to begin to work on some cooperation.

The military pressence of Russia and China is possibly the future largest naval issue for the United States. As natural resources are not the only thing that is up for grabs in the territory with trade routes also being up for grabs.

Incredible reading seeing how climate change is affecting global trade and navigation. These new trade routes are the future and China has already been capitalizing on it. China has already constructed or plan on constructing several research, manufacturing, and energy structures in the region. As the Arctic melts it will be interesting to see how it changes the world, with new movement unbound by the ice.