WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Angus King (I-ME) announced this week they are forming the United States Senate Arctic Caucus to open up a broader conversation about the nation’s future in the region as the United States prepares to take over the chairmanship of the Arctic Council, which rotates every two years.

“The United States is an Arctic Nation because of Alaska, but the Arctic community is a partner to each and every state; the sooner we fully engage and take on a leadership role, the better,” said Murkowski in a press release.

The Arctic Caucus’s mission will be to convene conversations among members of Congress and their staff on defense, science, commerce, trade, environment, maritime affairs and other relevant issues in the Arctic region.

Also this week, Murkowski warned that the United States is "woefully behind" other countries when it comes to development in the Arctic, reports The Hill. During a Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing, the Alaska senator criticized the "lack of capacity" the United States has in the region to increase exploration and development. 

During the hearing, The Hill reports that Adm. Robert Papp, appointed by the State Department as a special representative to the Arctic, said the United States is "behind the power curve in terms of being prepared" for an oil spill in the Arctic.

The news source notes that Papp said the United States and other countries on the Arctic Council should be "identifying shortfalls in terms of response equipment, inventorying what's available amongst the countries that surround the Arctic so that we can get a step ahead of what inevitably will happen." He added: "There will be a spill of some sort whether it's from drilling or from a marine casualty.”