Thomas Nilsen

Strategic bombers striking targets in Syria departed from Kola

Olenegorsk airbase is becoming important infrastructure in Putin’s power politics says Defense Analyst. The sortie shows that Russia practically can reach most targets in the world with its long-range bombers.
January 30, 2016

Here comes Iran’s low-enriched uranium

“Mikhail Dudin” sails into Scandinavia waters this weekend with 11 tons of the material the world feared Iran could use to develop nuclear weapons.
January 29, 2016

Nuclear powered icebreaker could be Arctic military command post

Rosatom proposes to the Ministry of Defense to commission “Sovietsky Soyuz” as a floating HQ for Arctic military operations.
January 28, 2016

Hurtigruten of the future will operate on battery power

“I will be disappointed if we don’t have a vessel with battery propulsion within 10 years,” says CEO Daniel Skjeldam.
January 28, 2016

Electric cars get network of fast-chargers in Northern Norway

Will make it possible for the rapid-growing fleet of private electric cars to drive the long and remote distances, including all major cross-border roads to Russia, Finland and Sweden.
January 27, 2016

“Karoline” sails even greener than her color

Can this be the Tesla of the Seas? Minister of Fisheries Per Sandberg is watching with great interest when Bent Gabrielsen sails the world’s first electric fishing boat in the waters outside northern Norway.
January 27, 2016

Keskitalo calls for new leadership

“History tells us its not enough to trust that those taking decisions will take the right decisions,” President of the Sami Parliament Aili Keskitalo says.
January 26, 2016

Record-high participation at 10th Arctic Frontiers

More than 1,400 delegates from around the globe are gathered in Tromsø this week to discuss the balance between the hunt for resources and the need for environmental protection of the Arctic.
January 25, 2016

Moscow tells Norway to halt return of asylum seekers

Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has informed Norwegian authorities that FSB border service wants better coordination of the transportations.
January 23, 2016

Campaign group urges bus drivers, police staff and others not to participate in deportations

The group says deporting asylum seekers to Russia without an actual consideration of their individual asylum applications, is a breach of Norway’s Human Rights obligations.
January 23, 2016

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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