Dorothee Thiesing

Associated Press

Zejun Hu, scientist at the Polar Research Institute of China, stands outside the construction site of the Aurora Observatory, a research facility to study the Northern Lights, in Karholl, northern Iceland. Funded by China's Polar Research Institute, the facility will house Chinese, Icelandic and international scientists when it opens next year.

China's Arctic Ambitions in Iceland

China's growing interest has aroused suspicions among some Icelanders, who are wary of big powers trying to grab their fish, energy or land.