Norway’s polar exploration heroes Fridtjof Nansen and Roald Amundsen never managed to sail all the the way to the North Pole, but a vessel from the country’s coast guard finally did on Wednesday. The ship’s captain and an Arctic researcher planted flags on the North Pole at exactly 9:32am. “It all went much faster than […]
Russia won’t let Hurtigruten sail
August 17, 2019
Russian authorities have spoiled some exclusive Arctic cruise plans for passengers on board one of the Norwegian shipping line Hurtigruten‘s newest vessels, the MS Spitsbergen. After initially seeming to welcome more cruise traffic in Russian waters, the Russians have suddenly denied the vessel entry. “We’d had a good dialogue with Russian authorities for a long […]
Russian exercises illustrate tension
August 14, 2019
Norwegian and NATO forces claim to be keeping a close eye this week on Russian military forces, which launched some of their largest military exercises yet on Wednesday. The exercises, taking place in four locations off Norway’s northwest coast, are widely viewed as a direct response to all the recent NATO, Norwegian and US military exercises […]
Russia posts missiles near the border
August 8, 2019
Russian officials have disclosed that they’ve moved a coastal missile system to a new location on Russia’s Sredny Peninsula in the far north. The new location is so close to Norway that it can be seen on clear days from Vardø, the northeastern Norwegian town that’s also home to a controversial radar and surveillance system […]
Norway braced for Russian exercises
August 6, 2019
The Russian Navy is expected to launch “unusually high activity” off the coast of Northern Norway next week, after announcing more military training exercises in the Norwegian Sea. Three US surveillance aircraft have joined Norway in efforts to keep an eye on the Russians. “A large number of naval vessels are on their way from […]
Norway hesitates over Iran response
July 12, 2019
The Norwegian government is still mulling over a request from the US for a military “contribution” towards boosting security in the waters off Iran. It won’t be easy for Norway to say “no,” but skepticism is running high and resistance is likely in Parliament. Norway’s foreign and defense ministers recently confirmed the initial request from […]
Norway unlikely to meet NATO goals
June 27, 2019
It took a complaint from NATO’s Norwegian chief Jens Stoltenberg to spur Norway’s defense ministry into action this week. It finally announced a bigger contribution to NATO’s so-called “Readiness Initiative” force, but Norway is still unlikely to meet goals for overall defense spending. Norwegian Defense Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen was on the defense himself as he […]
Ministry confirms frigate scrapping
June 24, 2019
It’s official: Norway’s badly damaged frigate KNM Helge Ingstad won’t be repaired. The defense ministry has finally determined that it will be better to simply scrap the expensive vessel that collided with a tanker last autumn and then sank. Defense Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen announced that the government now officially agrees that it’s “more appropriate” to […]
Norway remembers its D-Day heroes
June 6, 2019
Prime Minister Erna Solberg was among allied government leaders invited to D-Day memorials in Portsmouth this week, because of the role exiled Nowegians played in the massive invasion 75 years ago. She said it was sad that many members of Norway’s merchant marine never received the recognition they deserved. “It’s an honour to be able […]
Police, military tied to weapon scandal
May 22, 2019
Norwegian police have revealed a fairly brisk illegal weapons trade, after finding and seizing stashes of more than 2,000 firearms believed to stem from illegal sales. Several of the nearly 70 people charged in the case so far have worked within the armed forces or the police themselves. Police for Norway’s southeastern police district in […]
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