Thomas Nilsen

Russian Navy announces firing west of NATO Arctic exercise

Russia’s biggest warship, the nuclear-powered battle cruiser “Pyotr Veliky” and the destroyer “Severomorsk” are sailing towards the activated warning zone halfway between northern Norway and Iceland.
March 15, 2022

Andrey’s yacht, bought with money from Murmansk businesses, is seized by Italy

Andrey Melnichenko, owner of EuroChem’s mining and metallurgy subsidiary Kovdorskiy GOK, is sanctioned by the European Union in response to Russia’s war on Ukraine.
March 14, 2022

Finnair takes North Pole detour when avoiding Russia

The northern route from Helsinki to Tokyo goes over Kirkenes, Svalbard, the North Pole towards Alaska and then across the sea to Japan.
March 14, 2022

Russia will not observe Cold Response NATO exercise

The Post-Cold War era is over. Russia has informed it will not send any observers to the Norwegian-led large-scale winter exercise soon to start.
March 04, 2022

Arctic Council “in pause mode” as seven of eight member states condemn war

None of the other member states will travel to Russia for meetings in the Arctic Council, which for the current two-year period is chaired by Moscow.
March 03, 2022

Bellona halts activities in Russia after 30 years of environmental work

With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, we will no longer be able to continue the work with civil society, business and government, says the environmental group that has been active in northern Russia since the breakup of the Soviet Union.
March 03, 2022

European court rules Russia violated Arkhangelsk activist's rights

The European Court of Human Rights found that Russian authorities had violated Ivan Moseev's rights to freedom of expression.
March 03, 2022

As fear of a new Iron Curtain looms, Murmansk region tops Google search for «emigration»

Tight travel restrictions for Russians on land, in air, and at sea. A new iron curtain is falling in Europe.
March 02, 2022

Norway considering banning Russian ships from ports

Canada and the UK have already imposed a ban on Russian-owned, operated, chartered, registered or flagged vessels from docking at ports. Now, the European Union and Norway could follow.
March 02, 2022

Will oil get stuck in Murmansk as markets reduces purchases from Russia?

UK bans Russian oil tankers from ports and refineries in the European Union greatly reduces purchases out of Murmansk.
March 02, 2022

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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