Iran War Provides Opportunity for Russia To Test U.S. Alaska Defenses

As the U.S.-led war against Iran’s clerical regime continues apace, Russia is testing American capabilities in another corner of the globe.

Two Russian maritime patrol aircraft flew through the Alaskan and Canadian Air Defense Identification Zones (ADIZ) on March 4. The pair of Tu-142 planes were met by 12 Canadian and American aircraft sent to monitor and intercept the Russian patrol, according to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

Although Russia frequently flies through Alaska’s ADIZ, Moscow is likely taking advantage of America’s focus on the Middle East to probe for potential gaps in allied intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) and rapid-response capabilities in the Arctic.

Russian Threats to the U.S. Homeland

This month’s high-altitude U.S.-Russia encounter follows a similar event last month. On February 19, NORAD identified Russian aircraft operating near Alaska’s ADIZ and responded by dispatching an array of fighter jets and ISR aircraft. As with the latest incident, Russian planes remained in Alaska’s ADIZ — a stretch of demarcated international airspace that sits immediately before a country’s sovereign airspace — and did not enter sovereign U.S. territory.

Indeed, Moscow’s recent aerial actions in the High North are nothing new. Russia frequently operates within Alaska’s ADIZ to repeatedly assess what actions trigger a NORAD response, as well as the speed of the response. In 2025 alone, NORAD detected and dispatched aircraft to monitor and escort Russian aircraft in Alaska’s ADIZ nine times: twice in February, once in April and July, four times in August, and once in September.  

However, Russia’s incursion into Alaska’s ADIZ last week is the first since Washington initiated Operation Epic Fury against Tehran’s ruling regime.

Moscow likely wanted to test America’s Arctic monitoring and response capabilities amid the war in the Middle East by sending two maritime patrol aircraft into Alaska’s ADIZ. NORAD’s response of six fighter jets along with six refueling and ISR aircraft was likely intended as a strong signal to the Kremlin that although the United States is currently focused on Iran, its northern frontier remains heavily protected.

Cold War Tensions Resurface in the North

The incidents around Alaska have highlighted the broader Russian challenge to the U.S. and its allies in the Arctic.  British Defense Minister John Healey recently warned, “Russia poses the greatest threat to the Arctic and High North security that we have seen since the Cold War.”

Healey’s statement coincided with NATO’s announcement of the newly established Arctic Sentry scheme, a multi-domain enhanced Vigilance Activity that aims to bring all allied Arctic exercises and efforts under one coordinated umbrella. According to NATO, Arctic Sentry builds upon the agreement between President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte that the alliance will “collectively take more responsibility for the defense of the region considering Russia’s military activity.”

Heightened Coordination Among NATO States Is Critical

The Arctic is a vital strategic region, especially in the context of Russian threats against the West. Robust surveillance capabilities are critical for allied countries to monitor Moscow’s activities in the Arctic.

This includes tracking Russian submarines transiting the Greenland-Iceland-United Kingdom (GIUK) Gap into the Atlantic or potential missile launches targeting the West.

NATO countries with Arctic territories, among them Canada, Norway, Denmark and the United States, as well as countries close to the region like the United Kingdom, should endeavor to strengthen the alliance’s force posture in the region. They should prioritize improving and expanding sovereign and joint NATO ISR capabilities at every level, from seabed to outer space, using the new Arctic Sentry scheme to enhance cooperation on threats posed by Russia.

Emmerson Overell is a project coordinator at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) for the Center on Cyber and Technology Innovation (CCTI). For more analysis from Emmerson and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow FDD on X @FDD and @FDD_CCTI. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.