There are dozens of military bases and manned facilities around the Arctic, and hundreds more that include radar installations and other support equipment.

Military buildup at the top of the world began in World War II and then receded as the Cold War came and ended. But in the past ten years, with climate change accelerating and Russia waging war in Europe, the Arctic has been militarized again.

A large amount of Arctic territory belongs to Canada, but its military presence pales in comparison to other Arctic states. Here’s what the military picture looks like:

Canada

There are currently eight manned military sites in the Canadian Arctic, the largest of which is in Yellowknife. There are also facilities in Whitehorse, Iqaluit, Inuvik and several other communities. Alert, on the tip of Ellesmere Island, is the northernmost military installation in the world. There are about 55 people there at any given time, although no one lives permanently in Alert.

Canadian Coast Guard is present in the Arcticbut to say the coverage is thin would be an understatement. Its northern headquarters are in Yellowknife, which is off the coast, and employs a total of just 100 full-time people across the Arctic. And this despite the fact that the Arctic has 162,000 kilometers of coastline, 60 percent of Canada’s total coastline.

Canada also operates 47 radar sites that make up the Northern Warning System, but these are unmanned.

Greenland

There are only three military bases on the territory, the largest of which is the American space base Pituffik (formerly known as Thule Air Base). It manages the northernmost deep water port in the world, which is frozen in ice for nine months of the year. It also manages the airport throughout the year.

There are also smaller facilities – in the capital Nuuk and on the south coast – operated by the Danish military.

During the Cold War, the US had as many as 13 military bases in Greenland. Under a contract with Denmark signed in 1951, nothing prevents the US from re-establishing bases. That agreement made it clear that Denmark had sovereignty over Greenland, but essentially gave the US free rein to have as large a military presence as they wanted.

USA

The only part of the US that is in the Arctic is Alaska, and all ten domestic northern military installations are located there. Some are air bases that house F-35 and F-22 fighter jets. In others there are troops.

Fort Greely operates interceptor missiles, designed to shoot down any incoming missiles from a hostile nation, such as North Korea.

The US can send submarines to the Arctic year-round, but submarines tend to be more active further south.

Russia

The biggest military player in the Arctic is definitely Russia. It is currently estimated that there are between 30 and 40 staffed military installations in the north of the country. Some are scattered along Russia’s vast Arctic coast, including as far east as Alaska.

But the bulk of Russia’s Arctic forces are concentrated on the Kola Peninsula, near the borders with Norway and Finland along the coast of the Barents Sea. Some analysts estimate that there may be more military firepower there than anywhere else on earth. Russia has at least three air bases that house fighter, surveillance and transport aircraft. There are also numerous bases that can accommodate troops.

Russia’s Northern Naval Fleet is also based in Kola, which includes dozens of surface ships, submarines, icebreakers and other vessels.

Norway

Norway is one of the few NATO members to share a land border with Russia and has always been wary of its eastern neighbor – the theory is that Moscow could try to fill the void if Norway does not show its military might in the Arctic.

This is why Norway has 15 military facilities in its relatively small Arctic territory. They include bases for troops, its air force and the coast guard.

Norway also has sovereignty over the Svalbard Islands, which extend as far north as Canada’s Ellesmere Island and Greenland. But according to the agreement of 1920, these islands were demilitarized.