State Duma elections

Crushing victory for United Russia, but in this Arctic region Putin's party is dealt a blow

Longform
History and truth

The Russian Ministry of Defense is building a war memorial in Northern Norway

Longform
Russian North

"We are on our own and Russia is on its own"

Article
New Barents Observer report

Repression by Law: Independent media as an enemy of the state

Longform

Pyramiden - A Soviet ghost town in Arctic Norway

Lavna

Construction resumes at Murmansk transport hub

Pomor life

500 years ago, those seeking freedom came to the White Sea

EU-Russia

European Parliament: Putin's regime is a stagnating authoritarian kleptocracy

Research - partner contents

Fram Centre

What does the arctic fox eat?

Fram Centre

Rockslides in the Arctic: Why do we care?

Fram Centre

Seabirds ring the alarm

The Barents Observer Newsletter

After confirming you're a real person, you can write your email below and we include you to the subscription list.

ADVERTISEMENT

Polar bears may be inbreeding as climate change melts away Arctic ice

A record number of Atlantic walruses recorded in the Russian Arctic

Climate crisis

Two days after the election: Oslo welcomes new round of shelf drilling

Andrei Borovikov

Imprisoned Navalny aid in Arkhangelsk gets share of Boris Nemtsov award money

Podcasts

Fishermen troubled by escalating Russian war games

See more

Opinions

Anita Margrethe Halvorssen

My new attempt to change minds about the climate crisis

Mads Qvist Frederiksen

Winds of Change

Alina Bykova and Pavel Sulyandziga

A year after Arctic fuel spill, Norilsk Nickel continues to ignore Indigenous critics

Advertisement

ADVERTISEMENT

Military-style voting

Secret ballot

Northern Fleet exercises in parallel with Zapad-2021

Elections

Norway gets new government as voters make a forceful left turn

Sámediggi

Silje Karine Muotka is new President of Sámi Parliament

Every tenth have contracted the virus in Murmansk region, death toll nearing 2,000

Offensive weapon

More than 40 new Russian tanks rumble in the borderland

Oil on tundra

Novatek's new Arctic license areas are located in a protected nature reserve

Home to Sapmi

2200 Sámi artifacts returned by the National Museum of Finland

PHOTOS See more

  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru
  • Photo: rkomi.ru

Kolva river oil spill, May 2021

VIDEOS See more

With threats looming, Nordic countries strengthen defense cooperation

Zapad 2021

Fishermen troubled by escalating Russian war games

Novatek CEO blames bad Russian quality for troubled start of fourth train

How to ambush an Arctic seaport. Russian marines stage a show

Complex training

With take off from Evenes, Norwegian F-35 flies mission with B-2 bombers

Haakon of Norway

The soldiers have a high level of professionalism, says Crown Prince as he visits border to Russia

Russian minister of emergency situations dies during Arctic exercise

Thursday evening

Russia warns of rocket splashdown in busy fishing ground south of Svalbard

Ivan Pavlov

Prominent rights lawyer with Navalny links flees Russia amid pre-election exodus

Disaster exercise

As big military drills Zapad-21 kick off, Russian civil defence prepares for an Arctic emergency

Climate

In North Ural, researchers watch snowpack melt, exposing glacier’s boundaries

LNG-powered

First hybrid-electric luxury cruise ship reached North Pole

History of repression

The FSB has taken a great interest in reading

Indigenous rights

President of the Sámi Parliament of Finland expects the Parliament Act reform will go forward

Press freedom

Barents Observer fights Russian censorship, opens Telegram channel

Arctic shipping

Moscow mulls subsidies for shippers sailing Northern Sea Route

Censorship

Russia blocks VPN providers in ongoing internet crackdown

Expansive petroleum

Arctic oil on the table as Indian Minister pays visit to Russia

Barents Observer takes case against Russian censorship to European Court of Human Rights

Barents Must-Reads

On patrol along its Arctic coast, Norway's relation with Russia is challenged between deterrence and reassurance

Longread

Miners hunting for metals to battery cars threaten Sámi reindeer herders' homeland

Norway's celebration of Svalbard Treaty was followed by ardent and coordinated response from Moscow media

Photo story

Pasvik, the river that tells the High North

Climate change is about to divide Norway’s largest Arctic island into two

Russia presents a grandiose 5-year plan for the Arctic

K-19

Expedition finds reactors 56 years after dumping

Polar Industrialization

Giant module for Arctic LNG 2 sails Northern Sea Route

Second year in row, big numbers of wild reindeer calves are found dead along banks of great river Khatanga

Taimyr Peninsula

Reclaim of contaminated soil starts in Norilsk

Arctic Finland

First ever study finds microplastics in Näätämö River and Lake Inari

Funding secured for new seaside city district in Murmansk

Lapland

Nordic fighter jet exercises kicks off inside Arctic Circle

1941-45

Arkhangelsk marks 80th anniversary of first British convoy

Big dig along Yenisey Bay paves way for new major coal terminal

cod stocks deteriorates

EU voices concern over unsustainable cod fishing by Norway and Russia around Svalbard

polar tourism

New luxury ships offer choppers and subs, but the most popular Arctic destination won't allow it

Retro transition

Murmansk celebrates closure of oil-fuelled boiler. The new one runs on coal

Planned since 2007

Hurtigruten launches White Sea expeditions

Yellow card

Don’t pee on Russia - It will cost you, Norway says

78° North

World's northernmost gold miners expand digging at Bolshevik Island

Norway

Almost 90% of the country's population is vaccinated, but number of new COVID-cases still rockets

2 in 5 Russians can’t afford necessities – poll

Mining

Swedish mining company’s reservation of areas in Inari worries Sámi Parliament’s Vice-President: “A serious threat”

Arctic drilling

A major oil exploration is going on in Russia's East Arctic waters

Raja-Jooseppi

EU’s northernmost checkpoint to Russia opens new premises

Svalbard

Sharp population decline in Barentsburg

Arctic goes electric

Tromsø gets world’s northernmost electric post truck

nuclear rearmament

Sevmash yard begins construction of two more ballistic missile subs

Arctic mining

Inari municipality is hoping for a stronger control over mining questions after 3,000 sq kilometres reserved by Swedish company

Northern Finland

Stefania takes the crown in the tree hugging world championships

Invasive species

Humpback salmon have invaded the River Teno – local people are shaken

Fossil free future

Green ammonium production comes to Finnmark

State media

Fighting independent media, Moscow invests billions in patriotic internet contents for youth

nuclear-powered missile

Russia readies Burevestnik testing at Novaya Zemlya

Norwegian Oil Fund's new eco standards add pressure on Arctic extractors

Murmansk election

The proper ideals of the Duma

Arctic Hectare program

Murmansk offers free land plots to stop depopulation

In a surprise direction, Northern Fleet grouping sails west of Svalbard on annual Arctic voyage

The Arctic explorer

17 years after the disappearance of Frenchwoman Dominick Arduin, people close to her are working to keep her memory alive

Non-renewables

Big oil, gas and coal making headway on Russian Arctic coast

Investments

Russians offer Chinese oilmen a taste of Arctic methanol

Partners