Shell is planning to drill 70 miles north of Alaska to see whether 27 billion barrels of oil are there . Bob Reiss : -- For America , the stakes are huge in the Arctic . He says opening of the region could cheapen price of gas and products from Asia . Reiss : The U.S. has been pushing for a permanent presence on the North Pole since the Cold War ended.
Shell is planning to drill 70 miles north of Alaska to see whether 27 billion barrels of oil are there . Bob Reiss : For America , the stakes are huge in the Arctic . He says opening of the region could cheapen price of gas and products from Asia . Reiss : The U.S. has been pushing for a permanent presence on the North Pole since the Cold War ended.