The Russian icebreaker Vladimir Ignatyuk breaking a path in the annual sea ice to McMurdo Station, Antarctica on January 26, 2012.
Credit: Steve Royce
Responsible Statecraft talks about why we really need icebreakers, and it is not because the Russians have 40.
Chuck Hill's CG Blog 
Icebreaker Race? Who is kidding who?
Even after we get ours combined with Europe’s on patrol we will still be outnumbered, and theirs are armed…
Russian Navy has one armed icebreaking patrol ship homeported in Murmansk and the Russian Coast Guard has two smaller icebreaking vessels stationed in the Russian Far East.
Russia operates the world’s largest icebreaker fleet, with a total of about 41 to 57 icebreaking vessels, depending on the classification of smaller harbor and patrol ships. If all are operational is another question.
Crucially, Russia is the only country in the world that builds and operates nuclear-powered icebreakers. It maintains a fleet of 8 active nuclear icebreakers used to clear heavy commercial shipping lanes through the Arctic.
The Soviets always had armed icebreakers. During WWII they had some American built Wind class icebreakers. They did not have the 5″/38s like American Wind class, but they were armed.
The armed icebreakers they have now are relatively small. The reconstruction models of the ships had containerized missile launchers but as yet we have not seen any of these ships carrying missile launchers.