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Photos: On Norway’s icy border with Russia, unease over military buildup

The Aurora Borealis (Northern lights) shines over the memorial To Soldiers of the 1st Air Defence Corps to Abram Mys, outside Murmansk, Russia. "As a small nation neighbouring a superpower, you have to strike the right balance between deterrence and reassurance," Lieutenant-General Rune Jakobsen, Commander of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters said. But the military exercises are also important for Norway. The rising tension is unsettling many Norwegians, not least in the town of Kirkenes, which for three decades has been trying to foster cooperation with Russia.

Updated on: Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM IST

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A sign reading “Russia 490m” stands next to the checkpoint between Storskog and Borisoglebsk on the Norway-Russia border in Finnmark county, Norway. A few hundred kilometres from Setermoen, Russia is modernising its forces on the Kola Peninsula, home to its Northern Fleet. Russia has also carried out manoeuvres in recent weeks, staging a major submarine exercise in the North Atlantic, according to intelligence sources cited by Norwegian media. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

A sign reading “Russia 490m” stands next to the checkpoint between Storskog and Borisoglebsk on the Norway-Russia border in Finnmark county, Norway. A few hundred kilometres from Setermoen, Russia is modernising its forces on the Kola Peninsula, home to its Northern Fleet. Russia has also carried out manoeuvres in recent weeks, staging a major submarine exercise in the North Atlantic, according to intelligence sources cited by Norwegian media. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

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Under a soft winter sun US Marines train in snow as they learn how to fight in the freezing cold. “Which country is to the northeast?” Staff Sergeant Daniel Croak bellows at a group of 20 soldiers in camouflaged combat jackets and white trousers in a pine forest near the town of Setermoen. “Russia!” they shout back. The troops are part of a contingent of 650 Marines staging a recent joint military exercise with NATO-member Norway. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

Under a soft winter sun US Marines train in snow as they learn how to fight in the freezing cold. “Which country is to the northeast?” Staff Sergeant Daniel Croak bellows at a group of 20 soldiers in camouflaged combat jackets and white trousers in a pine forest near the town of Setermoen. “Russia!” they shout back. The troops are part of a contingent of 650 Marines staging a recent joint military exercise with NATO-member Norway. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

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A soldier from the Second Tank Squadron of the First Battalion of the Northern Brigade of the Norwegian Army looks out from the top of a tank during “Reindeer 2”, a Norwegian-U.S. military drill in Setermoen. “Do not use your GPSes. They may be jammed,” Croak barks to the Marines, a warning stemming from NATO accusations - denied by Russia - that Moscow has in the past jammed GPS systems in Norway. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

A soldier from the Second Tank Squadron of the First Battalion of the Northern Brigade of the Norwegian Army looks out from the top of a tank during “Reindeer 2”, a Norwegian-U.S. military drill in Setermoen. “Do not use your GPSes. They may be jammed,” Croak barks to the Marines, a warning stemming from NATO accusations - denied by Russia - that Moscow has in the past jammed GPS systems in Norway. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

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A view of houses surrounding landscape of Kirkenes. The rising tension is unsettling many Norwegians, not least in the town of Kirkenes, which for three decades has been trying to foster cooperation with Russia. Residents can cross the nearby border quickly with a visa-free permit. Many go to the nearby Russian town of Nikel to buy petrol because it is much cheaper there, and street signs use both the Cyrillic and Latin scripts. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

A view of houses surrounding landscape of Kirkenes. The rising tension is unsettling many Norwegians, not least in the town of Kirkenes, which for three decades has been trying to foster cooperation with Russia. Residents can cross the nearby border quickly with a visa-free permit. Many go to the nearby Russian town of Nikel to buy petrol because it is much cheaper there, and street signs use both the Cyrillic and Latin scripts. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

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A view shows a World War Two monument--To The Defenders of Soviet Arctic, in Murmansk, Russia. Nikolai Chagin, a mechanic from the Russian town of Severodvinsk, has worked at the shipyard in Kirkenes since 2006. “I don’t have those problems I used to have in Russia before: I have a good job, a normal salary,” he said. About 10% of Kirkenes residents are now from the Kola Peninsula. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

A view shows a World War Two monument--To The Defenders of Soviet Arctic, in Murmansk, Russia. Nikolai Chagin, a mechanic from the Russian town of Severodvinsk, has worked at the shipyard in Kirkenes since 2006. “I don’t have those problems I used to have in Russia before: I have a good job, a normal salary,” he said. About 10% of Kirkenes residents are now from the Kola Peninsula. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

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A lit flare streaks through the sky during a night exercise conducted by the Norwegian Army during Reindeer 2. Russia denies responsibility for the rise in tensions. It blames the recent basing of U.S. Marines in Norway, which it sees as a security challenge. But Norway’s worries grew after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine and then staged Arctic military exercises including maritime manoeuvres with ballistic missile-capable vessels present. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

A lit flare streaks through the sky during a night exercise conducted by the Norwegian Army during Reindeer 2. Russia denies responsibility for the rise in tensions. It blames the recent basing of U.S. Marines in Norway, which it sees as a security challenge. But Norway’s worries grew after Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine and then staged Arctic military exercises including maritime manoeuvres with ballistic missile-capable vessels present. (Stoyan Nenov / REUTERS)

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The Aurora Borealis (Northern lights) shines over the memorial To Soldiers of the 1st Air Defence Corps to Abram Mys, outside Murmansk, Russia. “As a small nation neighbouring a superpower, you have to strike the right balance between deterrence and reassurance,” Lieutenant-General Rune Jakobsen, Commander of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters said. But the military exercises are also important for Norway. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

Updated on Nov 08, 2019 11:56 AM

The Aurora Borealis (Northern lights) shines over the memorial To Soldiers of the 1st Air Defence Corps to Abram Mys, outside Murmansk, Russia. “As a small nation neighbouring a superpower, you have to strike the right balance between deterrence and reassurance,” Lieutenant-General Rune Jakobsen, Commander of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters said. But the military exercises are also important for Norway. (Maxim Shemetov / REUTERS)

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