Puffins, Zyn, and ‘Polar War’

Puffins, Zyn, and ‘Polar War’

From Angry Planet by Matthew Gault and Jason Fields

February 6, 2026 · 56 min

About this episode

The episode discusses the geopolitical significance of the Arctic and Greenland with journalist Kenneth R. Rosen, who shares insights from his book 'Polar War'.

Greenland fever has faded for now but it will return. The world’s polar region, you see, is pretty damn important. As the planet heats and the ice melts, what was once an impassible warren of ice and snow has become a geopolitical opportunity. On today’s Angry Planet, we host journalist Kenneth R. Rosen who just published the book Polar War . He’s spent the past few years among the ice and snow, embedding with troops, yearning for snus, and smoking cigarettes with morticians in the long dark. Rosen knows what makes the Arctic so important and can see the truths that undergird the obsession with Greenland. Getting bombastic and angry about Greenland “We already have Greenland” How is Turkey “near Arctic?” The Greenland obsession as proof of climate change What makes a good Arctic force Accession to NATO Servicing subs in the Arctic Trying to embed on a nuclear submarine Mispronouncing place names The most powerful navy in the world doesn’t have an icebreaker Spies in the polar regions “It should have been an article.” Smoking under a tree in the dark Snus vs Zyn The death drive of the penguin Buy Polar War: Submarines, Spies, and the Struggle for Power in a Melting Arctic US Army…

People in this episode

Guest: Kenneth R. Rosen

Topics covered

  • Greenland
  • Arctic
  • geopolitics
  • climate change
  • military

Keywords

  • polar region
  • ice melting
  • NATO
  • submarines
  • spies

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Polar War

Books & works: Polar War’, Angry Planet

Places: Greenland, Arctic, Greenland, Turkey, US, Norway

More episodes of Angry Planet

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Angry Planet podcast page.