{"id":3406,"date":"2025-08-26T22:55:26","date_gmt":"2025-08-26T20:55:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/?p=3406"},"modified":"2025-08-24T22:59:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-24T20:59:13","slug":"norway-takes-aim-at-arctic-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/2025\/08\/26\/norway-takes-aim-at-arctic-defense\/","title":{"rendered":"Norway takes aim at Arctic defense"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

All branches of the Norwegian military are boosting their presence, patrols and defense exercises in the country\u2019s Arctic areas. This week Norway also formally established its first new brigade since the Cold War, to expand and enhance defense operations closer to the Russian border, but it\u2019s unclear whether Norway will also send any peace-keeping troops to Ukraine.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As conversations about <\/strong>sending European forces into Ukraine pick up, Norway ceremoniously launched its new Finnmarksbrigaden.<\/em> It will double the numbers of soldiers in Northern Norway, with around 5,000 soldiers based in Finnmark, roughly the same as those in Brigade Nord<\/em>, based in the neighbouring county of Troms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the first brigade ever set up in Finnmark, which shares a border with Russia just east of Kirkenes. Both Norway and NATO earlier made a point of not<\/em> having much military presence or exercises in Finnmark, so as not to provoke Russia, but all that changed after Russia invaded Ukraine in early 2022. Norway and Russia\u2019s other neighbours have been on guard ever since.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Major General Lars Lervik, chief of the Norwegian army, notes how Russia has expressed \u201cambitions\u201d about increasing its military presence and capacity along its borders to both Norway and Finland. \u201cSo this (the new brigade) is about positioning ourselves and hindering (Russian forces) from getting any ideas about testing themselves,\u201d Lervik told newspaper Aftenposten<\/em> after the brigade was formally established earlier this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He doesn\u2019t foresee an invasion of Norway,<\/strong> but expects more hybrid threats. \u201cIt\u2019s important for us to be ready around the clock, all week long, all year. Land-based troops can contribute to that,\u201d he said, adding that the new brigade with bases at both Porsangmoen east of Alta and much farther east at H\u00f8ybuktmoen (just outside Kirkenes in S\u00f8r-Varanger) will cooperate closely with police and other local leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Norwegian troops gathered at Porsangmoen this week for the formal establishment of Norway\u2019s first new brigade since the Cold War, and the first ever in Finnmark. PHOTO: Helene Sofie Thorkildsen\/Forsvaret<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The region that encompasses the northern areas<\/strong> of Norway, Sweden and Finland is called Nordkalotten<\/em>, and with both Sweden and Finland now members of NATO, it\u2019s now an important strategic part of the defense alliance. All three Nordic countries have been working closely together and coordinating efforts, with more and bigger military exercises and more air defense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Norway\u2019s military patrol of the country\u2019s border to Russia will continue, with expanded troops based in both S\u00f8r-Varanger and Porsangmoen and other functions in Alta and \u201cother places,\u201d Lervik said. \u201cWe working to assemble artillery, tanks, air defense systems and drones.\u201d He noted that the brigade now established is functional but has deficiences. Plans call for acquisition of more material, personnel and instructors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The long-term plan for the Finnmark Brigade notes how the war in Ukraine \u201chas strengthened Russia\u2019s need for strategic dominance in the Arctic.\u201d It further projects that Russia\u2019s \u201cdefense concept\u201d calls for Norway and Norwegian-controlled areas to be lying fully or partly behind Russian lines of defense. That makes defense of all of Nordkalotten even more important, with Norway as an important entry point for allied forces and supplies to Finland and Sweden.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr St\u00f8re visiting a military observation tower in eastern Finnmark last winter, at the border to Russia. PHOTO: Forsvaret\/Arnfinn Sj\u00f8enden<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

There\u2019s no question Norway is rebuilding its defense forces<\/strong> and continuing to offer support to Ukraine. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr St\u00f8re said this week that his government hasn\u2019t, however, taken a position on whether Norway will send military personnel to Ukraine as part of security guarantees during a ceasefire or truce between Ukraine and Russia. US President Donald Trump wants Europe to provide soldiers to secure any ceasefire and hinder new Russian attacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

France, the UK, Germany and Poland have signalled willingness to provide such a coalition, with air support from the US, as has Sweden. \u201cWe haven\u2019t addressed that yet,\u201d St\u00f8re told Aftenposten<\/em> when asked what Norway\u2019s contribution might be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe most important thing we can do for security guarantees now is to make sure Ukraine can defend itself,\u201d St\u00f8re said. \u201cWe will continue our support for that. We can contribute economically. We are a big supporter of Ukraine, but we won\u2019t commit soldiers to an operation we don\u2019t yet know the character of.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

All branches of the Norwegian military are boosting their presence, patrols and defense exercises in the country\u2019s Arctic areas.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3407,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"yes","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_themeisle_gutenberg_block_has_review":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-security"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3406"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3408,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3406\/revisions\/3408"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/arcticwatch.info\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}