Newsletter A Geopolitical Hotspot
View towards the island of Landegode on a June evening in Bodø, 2025. (Photo: Trine Jonassen)
Dear reader. The eyes of the world have turned toward the Arctic – for better and for worse. Trump, Putin, Greenland, Arctic shipping, and Russia's shadow fleet are among the topics making the Arctic a geopolitical hotspot. Here is the latest news from the High North.
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”, writes commentator Arne O. Holm in his column.
The Norwegian general election takes place in three weeks, but the government's promise of an Arctic strategy before the summer hasn't yielded any results.
In an interview with journalist Hilde Bye, however, the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs revealed that the government will present the new Arctic strategy later in August.
The Norwegian government’s new preparedness proposal for the High North falls short, expert believes. Now, the Ministry of Public Security is responding to the criticism.
When Bye visited Anchorage recently, Greenland was still a hot topic.
"It's not a secret that this has been a special and challenging period, and something that we have not experienced before", says the Head of Greenland's Representation to the US to Bye.
On Friday, the presidents of the USA and Russia will meet in Alaska to discuss the war in Ukraine.
Shipping
We are still following the Russian shadow fleet closely, and the Norwegian government recently announced that it would begin inspecting foreign-flagged tankers passing through its waters.
There is a lot of maritime activity in the Arctic.
Recently, the US Coast Guard was watching five Chinese icebreaking research vessels operating in or close to American Arctic waters.
The Norwegian tall ship Statsraad Lehmkuhl will not carry out the planned voyage through the Northwest Passage due to demanding ice conditions.
And South Korea will establish a dedicated Arctic shipping division and launch pilot operations next summer.
Bothersome sea urchins
In the North of Norway, catfish will try to combat the problem with sea urchins and their overgrazing of the kelp forest along the Norwegian coast.
Read also about young people from Pasvik Folk High School who are starring in a documentary which is now showing in cinemas all over the US. (Norwegian only)
Read about all this and more at High North News. Remember to follow us on social media to receive the latest news from the Arctic.
Arctic greetings from Editor-in-Chief Trine Jonassen