Eight U.S. senators — all women — set out for the Arctic on Thursday, carrying a message of reassurance to allies unnerved by President Donald Trump’s confrontational posture in the region. Led by Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, the delegation departed for a multi‑nation tour that includes diplomatic meetings with government officials, visits to military installations, and a stop at the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, where polar‑bear escorts are mandatory.
“I want them to experience, first of all, the awesomeness of the Arctic,” Murkowski said in an interview before the trip.
The trip was organized as tensions between the United States and its northern allies have escalated. Trump has repeatedly challenged Arctic territorial norms, including his persistent calls for the U.S. to purchase Greenland, an autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark. Just this week, the Pentagon announced it would pause U.S. participation in the Permanent Joint Board on Defense with Canada, a binational body established in 1940 to coordinate continental defense. The move drew sharp criticism from Ottawa and raised questions about the administration’s commitment to collective security in North America.
Murkowski and Shaheen have both been vocal critics of Trump’s Arctic policy, and the trip is part of a congressional effort to signal continued support for alliances. The Senate delegation includes Sens. Cindy Hyde‑Smith (R‑Miss.), Maggie Hassan (D‑N.H.), Cynthia Lummis (R‑Wyo.), Katie Britt (R‑Ala.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D‑Nev.), and Kirsten Gillibrand (D‑N.Y.). The group’s all‑female composition extends to its staff and military liaison officers, according to Senate aides.
The senators will also observe U.S. and allied military exercises in the region, where the harsh environment presents unique logistical and operational challenges, a Senate aide said.