Cruise ships offering passengers to explore above and beyond what was previously imaginable are coming to the Arctic for the 2022 season. Svalbard, however, says no to submarine- and helicopter excursions.
Insulting Russia by peeing towards the border could cost you from 3,000 kroner and up. And be aware, Norway’s military border guards are watching via CCTV cameras.
The 26 tons heavy battery-powered truck is now driving the 1,600 kilometers distance north from Oslo to Tromsø where it will be pioneer-testing Norway’s postal service in cold climate.
Busy days are getting even busier for builders of Russia’s new fleet of the Borei class submarines. Keel laying ceremony for the ninth and tenth vessel in the class took place in Severodvinsk on August 23.
A large area in the eastern Barents Sea is closed off and new satellite images show massive activity at Pankovo, Russia's test launch site for the nuclear-powered cruise missile.
The anti-submarine destroyer Severomorsk leads the Russian navy group, said to carry out “a set of measured aimed at protecting the interests of the Russian Federation in the Arctic.”
The Kiruna-based mining company doubled sales and posted an operating profit of 9,1 billion Swedish kroner (€898 million) in the second quarter compared with same period last year.
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.