Placing US Tanks in Svalbard is an exceptionally bad proposal Comment: Stockpiling of weapons, tanks, artillery and vehicles, including American ones, on the archipelago, is the latest proposal for "peaceful" development in the North.
Psychological Warfare and a Mental Invasion That Dominates Our Lives Comment: He digs into our heads without being invited. A mental invasion that commands attention in conversations where people meet. I am talking about Donald Trump's psychological warfare. A form of terrorism that impacts us all, yet is never on the negotiation table when our most powerful leaders meet.
A Football Achievement of Historic High North Dimensions Bodø, Northern Norway (Comment): They crushed a "continental superpower," according to the British The Guardian. And not just that. With a historic football win over Manchester City themselves, Bodø/Glimt even managed to chase Donald Trump out of the headlines for a while. That is also something they are quite alone in doing.
We’re at the Point Where European Leaders Want to Use Military Muscles to Deter the US Comment: Greenland's member of the Danish Parliament, Aaja Chemnitz, calls for a European and Nordic military exercise in Greenland as a response to Donald Trump's threats. Diplomatic language is no longer deterring. Our closest ally must be deterred with military power.
Who to Trust? Danish or Norwegian Intelligence? Comment: We are about to close on a turbulent year, to put it mildly. It might have been the most turbulent any of us can remember. So let us hope that next year offers something different, such as the Arctic remaining a region without armed conflict.
The Silk Gloves Are off and Europe Is in the Splits Comment: The silk gloves are off. It took the Danish Defence Intelligence Service to stand up against the USA and Donald Trump. Their message cannot be misunderstood: the USA is a threat to Europe.
A Peace Prize On Crutches Comment: Peace prize winner Maria Corina Machado was met with protests instead of peace walks when she finally arrived in Norway to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. One of the reasons is her close ties to Donald Trump. Such reasoning opens up for endless protests across Europe.
The Dramatic Battle Over Defense Expenses Is About Much More Than Money Comment: Right now, a dramatic battle is taking place within the EU about the continued funding of Ukraine's defense against an increasingly aggressive Russia. However, this is not just about money, but largely also about the voters' continued trust in their leaders.
The EU Finally Gets It, Leading to New Possibilities for Us Comment: While Norway is refusing to adjust its position on the EU, the EU recently adopted a new strategic resolution for the Arctic that could have a major impact on Norway and the High North. Its most notable feature is the recognition of increased militarization in the North.
Why November 2028 is Crucial for Europe's Security Comment: When will Russia once again be able to attack another European country? For Northern Europe and a number of Baltic states, that will hopefully not be possible until November 7th, 2028. The so-called peace agreement for Ukraine showcases the gravity of the situation.
The Municipal Crisis: I Had to Go to Finland to Find a Happy Mayor Comment: He had long been left in my notebook, the mayor of Finnish Sodankylä. Time and again, he lost out to comments on more critical conditions in the North. But he didn't give up. Like a blister, he called for my attention.
We Are in a Squeeze Between the EU and Russia Comment: The Northern Norwegian business sector is in a double bind. The fisheries negotiations with Russia are at a standstill, while cod quotas are continuing to decrease. The EU is closing its doors on the ferroalloy industry. In total, this impacts thousands of jobs in the North.
More Worried About Putin Than the Security of Norwegian Citizens? Really? Comment: Altinget's reporter has visited Finnmark. The experience apparently made an impression. After the usual meteorological observations, as every capital-bound journalist must present after a visit to the North for some reason, she introduces claims that are completely removed from our reality in the North.
Politicians Plant Disdain For Science in Their Voters Comment (Reykjavik): What happens when political leaders plant disdain for research and science in their voters? Well, that does not remain to be seen. We are already heading there, guided by a country that once was an international beacon of research.
Locked Up in Washington, Murkowski Gave an Almost Absurd Insight Into American Madness Reykjavik (Comment): A deeply affected US Senator, Lisa Murkowski, spoke via videolink to 2,000 participants at the international Arctic Circle conference here in Reykjavik yesterday. She was supposed to be on stage, but instead showcased an involuntary digital demonstration of the madness of US politics.
A Perfect Storm: When Healthcare and Defense Competes for the Same Youths Comment (Porsangmoen og Sodankyle): A perfect storm is brewing in the North. Soon, two of our most important public agencies will fight for the same workforce. Without drastic measures, one of them, perhaps both, will be left as losers.
A Salary Package of a Few Millions Does Not Solve a Single Health Problem Comment: When the health sector fails, the health authorities' contract with society at large also fails. Sky-high executive salaries suggest that the authorities believe this is a communications issue to pay their way out of.
A Salary Package of a Few Millions Does Not Solve a Single Health Problem Comment: When the health sector fails, the health authorities' contract with society at large also fails. Sky-high executive salaries suggest that the authorities believe this is a communications issue to pay their way out of.
A Salary Package of a Few Millions Does Not Solve a Single Health Problem Comment: When the health sector fails, the health authorities' contract with society at large also fails. Sky-high executive salaries suggest that the authorities believe this is a communications issue to pay their way out of.
Bodø/Glimt's Success Fulfills 20 Years of High North Ambitions Comment: If we feed 20 years of the slogans and promises of the High North policy into a computer and ask for a short summary, the answer will be the football club Bodø/Glimt. No business, cultural institution, or political arena even comes close to fulfilling all political ambitions on behalf of those of us who live in the North.
Danish Drone Incursions Reveal an Embarrassing Defense Policy Blind Zone Comment: On Thursday night, the Danish Police, defense, and intelligence organized a press conference. The topic was the recent drone incursions at Danish airports and defense installations. Neither the uniforms nor the dark suits could hide the fact that Denmark is entirely lost in regard to what hit them earlier this week.
When Generals Move Gas Cans Away From a Flaming Fire Comment (Oslo): "We cannot protect ourselves against everything," said the Norwegian Chief of Defense, Eirik Kristoffersen, providing a room full of international academics with Arctic expertise a crash course in democracy. "You can give me more power. But I don't want it."
We Are Placing Our Faith in the Hands of a President With Contempt for Democracy Comment: The US warship USSGerald R. Ford hassailed into the Oslofjord once again. This reminds the rest of the country that we must prepare for war. Yet, the voyage into a fjord usually filled with cruise boats and pleasure yachts is also a story about us placing our faith in the hands of a president with dramatically different values from ours.
Norway's 2025 Election: The Election In Which Half of Norway Was Overlooked and Forgotten Comment: The Norwegian parliamentary election of 2025 will go down as the election in which half of Norway was ignored and forgotten. That is both striking and scary. The gentle attempts at putting the High North on the agenda were arrogantly dismissed.
A Breakdown That Could Lead to an Ecological Disaster Comment: If anyone still wonders whether Norway is deeply involved in Russia's war against Ukraine, they should take a look at the threats against the Norwegian-Russian fisheries agreement. Add a US threat to the Norwegian Oil Fund, and a perfect storm is brewing around two of our most important resources.
Norway’s High North Strategy: The Same Slogans, but an Entirely Different and Dramatic Situation Comment from Kirkenes, Northern Norway: The Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs Espen Barth Eide was state secretary in the Ministry of Defense when the Labor Party launched its first Arctic policy. Now, 20 years later, the problems remain the same, but the security policy situation is completely different.
The Spectacular Arctic: On Church Walks and Football Kiruna: This week, I have wandered and biked around Kiruna, a Swedish mining city, home to 22.4000 inhabitants. The city is moving and even the old, beautiful church has been on a drive. Back in Norway, I've seen an Arctic football club, Bodø Glimt, take its first step into European top football.
Putin Meeting Trump in the Arctic Has a Purely Practical, Not Political, Reasoning At the time of writing, the meeting between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska is only hours away. The meeting takes place in the American Arctic for purely practical, not political reasons. The symbolism, however, is heavy.
Should We Really Secure Our Own Peace to Speculation in Israeli War Stocks? Comment: For almost two years, the occupying power Israel has attacked and killed civilian Palestinians. At the same time as the ongoing genocide, the Norwegian Oil Fund has systematically cherry-picked stocks in the Israeli war industry. The profit is used to secure our own peace.
The Norwegian King's Svalbard Visit Was Important for Completely Different Reasons Than Sovereignty Comment: Norway's King Harald has visited Svalbard. Iconic pictures of royalty struggling to get ashore on the stormy Arctic island of Bjørnøya, before boarding a trailer pulled by a tractor, are going around the world. From there, stories about the geopolitical significance of the King's visit have arisen.
Trump Wants to Pull Troops Out of Europe. To Use Them Against His Own People? Comment: Donald Trump continues to threaten aid for Ukraine. Instead, he sends soldiers against his own people. Whether or not he, as president, is allowed to do so is apparently besides the point.
The Fascists, Autocrats, and Dictators Looking to Ruin Our Democracy Are Creeping Closer Comment: It is not the fear of a military war in the Arctic that frightens me most. It is the increasingly extensive attack on our democracies that keeps me awake at night. The war is already underway and will not be stopped by expanding weapon arsenals.
A Good Tax Proposal Which Should Also Be Used Where It Is Most Urgently Needed Comment: Norway's Minister of Finance utilizes tax measures to get more young people into work. Through a raffle, he aims to test the impact of tax reliefs on those outside the workforce. It is a good proposal and should also be applied to other vulnerable groups.
High North Politics Are Unlike Other Politics Comment (Kirkenes, Northern Norway): High North politics are unlike other politics. It is meant to work locally, but to be understood and defended nationally. It is to balance war rhetoric with a hope of private investors and a viable business sector. Not least, it is to maintain a settlement on the border with Russia's nuclear weapons.
The High North Is the Place to Meet Ministers and Generals Comment: This week, the chance of meeting a Chief of Defense or a Norwegian Minister was high. That is, if you were in the North. If you find yourself further south in the country, grumpy mayors and opposition politicians can be found right around the corner.
Our Time’s Financial “Draft Evaders” Comment: The public budgets across Europe are wrought to face Russian aggression and possible American military withdrawal. The wealthy respond by moving to Switzerland. That is how they keep their money to themselves and evade contributing to the defense of Europe.
The Arctic Council Survives Both Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump Comment: They stood humble, but smiling in the background, Norway's Morten Høglund and Solveig Rossabø, when Denmark took over the chairship of the Arctic Council on Monday. In front of them, on stage, the Norwegian MFA Espen Barth Eide had just presented a collection of non-committal political platitudes, or a closing statement as it is officially called.
The Arctic Council: On the Brink of Collapse or Still a Hope for Cooperation? Comment: The US threatens to take over Greenland and Canada with military power if necessary. The Nordic countries, Norway, Sweden, and Finland, fear a military attack from Russia. On Monday, they "meet" in Tromsø.
They Are Practically Stumbling in the Dark, but the Message Is Crystal Clear Comment: The experts who are supposed to inform us about the future in a war-ridden Europe are practically stumbling in the dark. So what are they still trying to tell us?
The Flight to America Did Not Turn Out as Planned Comment: They fled Norwegian tax policies and a lack of predictability in the industrial policy. Those who left for the US got the worst of it. It turns out the grass wasn't greener on the other side of the Atlantic.
They Make a Living Giving Saving Tips to People Who Barely Have a Dollar to Spare Comment: In the middle of the Donald Trump-created chaos, even privileged problems get their time in the spotlight. The news columns are filled with financial advisors giving investment tips to people without a dollar to spare. An American madness threatens the finance world but simultaneously shadows the nearly immeasurable problems that are not listed on the stock exchange.
No One Can Trust the US Anymore Comment: "They have ripped us off," wailed Donald Trump, pointing to Jan Mayen, an icy islet in the Barents Sea. Together with war-ridden and dirt-poor countries, often bombed to pieces by the US, Jan Mayen represents a serious and destructive threat against the US economy, according to Donald Trump.
The Noise of Boring Taxes Debate Cannot Drown Out the Gravity We’re Facing Comment (Narvik): In October last year, I sat in Reykjavik and wrote about how contradictory it was that Russia's war against Ukraine created optimism in the Arctic. The defense industry was a new area of investment. The question that remained unanswered was whether the business sector in the North was to connect to the "new" industry.
Amid War and Tariffs, the Biggest Crises Are Forgotten Comment: Lately, everything revolves around war with weapons and tariffs. Yet, there are greater threats than that lurking under the surface. There just isn't any place for them in the news.
While the US Is Crumbling, I Seek Refuge in an Art Museum Comment: The news stories are coming in at a relentless pace. I am seeking refuge in the latest addition to the northern art scene. The Northern Norwegian Art Museum is now in place in Bodø, northern Norway, inviting us to understand both our past and our future.
Blood Is Dripping From the Fisheries, but They Refuse to Give Up Comment: First, a spoiler: If you're not worried enough already, you will be after this. But read the entire comment as it ends on a hopeful note. But first, some bloody seriousness.
The Most Important Point Drowned In a Stream of Money and Officers Comment: In May 2023, a proud and offensive leader of the Defense Commission presented their recommendations. However, the perhaps most important point was drowned in a stream of money, personnel, and ability to execute. The consequences reached far into the Armed Forces' long-term plan. We are paying for that today.
The Defense Analysis 2025: We Can No Longer Assume That the US Is Our Most Important Ally Comment: Lately, we have been bombarded by security policy analyses. They all share some common traits, though. One is that Donald Trump has changed the security policy situation faster than the ink can dry on the pages of the reports. Most recently, it is the Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI) that struggles to keep up with the US chaos pilot.
Canned Food Is of No Help if Soldiers Must Use a Rail Replacement Bus Service Comment: Both Danish and Swedish intelligence urges the Nordics to prepare for war, while Norway is a bit more reserved. At the same time, Donald Trump is making it clear that the US does not feel obligated to support other NATO countries in a war. How well prepared are we really?
The Political Game Continues Even as the Distinction Between War and Peace Is Blurred Comment: They were supposed to utilize the whole country and create viable communities on the border with Russia. A powerful industry investment would replace measly measures in the so-called action zone. Well, that did not go according to plan. Even after the Norwegian government collapsed, the reversal of adopted policies continues.
