An all-women Senate delegation is heading to the Arctic to reassure US allies

Source: AP

Updated 1:12 PM EDT, May 22, 2026


WASHINGTON (AP) — Seeking to reassure U.S. allies, a bipartisan group of senators is departing for a tour of Arctic nations. And this time they’re leaving the men behind.

From the eight senators to their staff and military liaison officers, the group will be entirely women as they pay diplomatic visits to government officials in four Arctic nations, witness the challenges for militaries in the region and visit a Norwegian archipelago so remote they will need escorts to avoid run-ins with polar bears.

“I want them to experience, first of all, the awesomeness of the Arctic,” said Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, who is leading the trip alongside Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The trip was born out of both senator’s work to stabilize relations with U.S. allies in North America and northern Europe at a time when President Donald Trump has taken an aggressive, go-it-alone stance in the region. Just this week, the Pentagon announced that the U.S. would pause participation on a joint board with Canada for continental defense that dates back to World War II. Murkowski and Shaheen said that is the wrong approach in an Arctic region that has increasing strategic value and unique challenges.

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/arctic-greenland-women-senators-f932b33dca26620cc16ae266951de7b4