IMO the resources pitch is a boondoggle. They want to put missiles on Russia's border. If the resources mattered so much, then why don't we scramble for the resources of the Pacific?
US Aims to Bolster Its Arctic Presence to Control Polar Vast Resources. Trump Wants to Counter Russian Influence
https://www.globalresearch.ca/us-aims-bolster-arctic-presence-control-polar-vast-resources/5883484
Discussion
easier to get them from land than under water, and 'countering Russian influence' I take to mean exactly what you said. It can be both, and that's what my take was since first mention of it.