Thomas Nilsen

FSB pushes border opening with Finland, 18 walkers crossed illegally on Thursday

Finnish border guard on Thursday arrested 18 people from the Middle East who walked the snow from Russia.
January 25, 2024

Russia's next nuclear icebreaker will be named “Leningrad”

Keel laying ceremony takes place at the Baltic Shipyard on January 26, the anniversary day of the end of the World War II siege of Leningrad.
January 22, 2024

Norwegian king crab export hits record thanks to Russia sanctions

Export value last year increased by 43% compared with 2022, data from the Norwegian Seafood Council shows.
January 19, 2024

2023 saw more Russian strategic bombers outside Norway

They are Moscow’s most busy cruise missile platforms in the war of aggression against Ukraine, but the Tu-95 and Tu-160 aircraft still found time to increase the number of flights outside Norwegian air space in 2023.
January 15, 2024

Crossings remained low in turbulent border year

Norwegian immigration police summarize traffic for 2023, 30% growth, but far below pre-COVID levels.
January 14, 2024

British troops deploy to northern Norway ahead of huge NATO Arctic exercise

Nordic Response 2024 will be NATO’s biggest Arctic exercise in a generation.
January 14, 2024

Here comes the sun

Polar night comes to an end with the sun this weekend orange-coloring the skies in northernmost Scandinavia.
January 14, 2024

Arctic Russian airbase “undoubtedly” on radar of Ukrainian armed forces, expert says

The Olenya airbase is undoubtedly on the radar of Ukrainian armed forces, says an expert after a wave of bombers from the Kola Peninsula again launched a massive cruise missile attack on Ukraine, the third since Christmas.
January 09, 2024

Russia enters Christmas with rocket splash-down next to Norway's Vardø radar

No ‘Peace on Earth’ is planned by Russia ahead of Christmas. As the war in Ukraine continues, a huge military warning area is announced north of the Kola Peninsula. Another warning includes air space straight along Norway’s 12 nautical mile border outside the military radars in Vardø.
December 15, 2023

Finland closes border again after test-reopening made FSB send new wave of migrants

Russian FSB border guard service allowed for 93 migrants to cross the Niirala border with Finland on Thursday, a move Helsinki says is a “hybrid operation” that will not be tolerated.
December 15, 2023

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Thomas Nilsen is editor of the Independent Barents Observer with its news desk located in Kirkenes, northern Norway. He has a long experience in media cooperation across the borders in the high north of Europe, both as radio- and newspaper reporter all the way back to the days before the breakup of the Soviet Union. 

Nilsen has been editor of Barents Observer since 2009.

He was Deputy Head of the Norwegian Barents Secretariat from 2004-2009. Until 2003, he worked 12 years for the Bellona Foundation’s Russian study group, focusing on nuclear safety issues and general environmental challenges in northern areas and the Arctic. 

Thomas has been traveling extensively across northern Scandinavia and Arctic Russia since the late 80’s working for different media and organizations. He is also a guide at sea and in remote locations in the Russian north for various groups and regularly lectures on security issues, environmental and socio-economic development.

Thomas Nilsen studied at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Mobile: +47-90573143

thomas@thebarentsobserver.com
@nilsen.thomas