Thomas Nilsen
@thomasnilsen.bsky.social
Editor of the Barents Observer.
Freedom to write - Freedom to publish!
#Arctic #Environment #Security #Russia #Nuclear #FSB #OSINT #InfoOps
Freedom to write - Freedom to publish!
#Arctic #Environment #Security #Russia #Nuclear #FSB #OSINT #InfoOps
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
Minus 30 degrees outside, plus 10 inside. While the men are waging hot war on foreign soil, the wives and children of military men from the Kola Peninsula live through ice-cold winter days without heating in their houses
Families of Russian arctic warriors are left in freezing cold
While the men are waging war on foreign soil, and the state spends massive resources on violence and territorial expansion, the wives and children of military men from the Kola Peninsula live through ...
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 24, 2025 at 6:31 PM
Minus 30 degrees outside, plus 10 inside. While the men are waging hot war on foreign soil, the wives and children of military men from the Kola Peninsula live through ice-cold winter days without heating in their houses
Nordic-Baltic will continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen Europe’s defence to deter further Russian aggression. As long as Russia continues its war against Ukraine, we will also support strengthening sanctions and wider economic measures.
Joint Statement by the Leaders of the Nordic-Baltic Eight
We – the leaders of the Nordic-Baltic Eight – spoke with President Zelenskyy today. We have from the outset of Russia’s war of aggression stood by Ukraine’s side and we will continue to do so. Our res...
www.regjeringen.no
November 23, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Nordic-Baltic will continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen Europe’s defence to deter further Russian aggression. As long as Russia continues its war against Ukraine, we will also support strengthening sanctions and wider economic measures.
This zigzag is how tonight’s flight in southern Arkhangelsk region looks like on FlightRadar due to severe jamming. Drones downed in the area earlier today. www.thebarentsobserver.com/security/war...
November 23, 2025 at 7:30 PM
This zigzag is how tonight’s flight in southern Arkhangelsk region looks like on FlightRadar due to severe jamming. Drones downed in the area earlier today. www.thebarentsobserver.com/security/war...
For å understreke at grenser ikke kan flyttes med makt kan gjerne en av 🇳🇴 nye fregatter hete KNM Varangerfjord, evt. KNM Kirkenes hvis bynavn velges.
www.forsvaretsforum.no/fregatt-kron...
www.forsvaretsforum.no/fregatt-kron...
Hva skal barnet hete?
Valg av nye fregatter har forårsaket mye debatt og sterke følelser, men hva bør de nye skipene hete? Skal vi inspireres av byer, konger, helgener eller guder?
www.forsvaretsforum.no
November 23, 2025 at 9:51 AM
For å understreke at grenser ikke kan flyttes med makt kan gjerne en av 🇳🇴 nye fregatter hete KNM Varangerfjord, evt. KNM Kirkenes hvis bynavn velges.
www.forsvaretsforum.no/fregatt-kron...
www.forsvaretsforum.no/fregatt-kron...
A good look back on the 2015 🇷🇺🇧🇻 Storskog migrant crisis. FSB's fingerprints were found all over the operation.
By @kaeggen.bsky.social sky.social & Jyri Lavikainen.
By @kaeggen.bsky.social sky.social & Jyri Lavikainen.
Russia Wielded Migration Against Europe Earlier Than You Think - The Moscow Times
Opinion | Since 2020, stories about the instrumentalized use of migrants have regularly appeared in the news.
www.themoscowtimes.com
November 22, 2025 at 12:48 PM
A good look back on the 2015 🇷🇺🇧🇻 Storskog migrant crisis. FSB's fingerprints were found all over the operation.
By @kaeggen.bsky.social sky.social & Jyri Lavikainen.
By @kaeggen.bsky.social sky.social & Jyri Lavikainen.
Out of sight out of mind: Putin’s war criminals want to hide the growing number of disabled, limbless soldiers. Opens giant hospital-centre in closed military town Mirny, deep into faraway forests in Arkhangelsk Oblast.
New military hospital in Northern Russia opens doors for legions of wounded men
As the number of killed and wounded soldiers on the battlefields in Ukraine reaches a record high, the Russian ministry of war opens its new large military hospital in Mirny, Arkhangelsk region.
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 21, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Out of sight out of mind: Putin’s war criminals want to hide the growing number of disabled, limbless soldiers. Opens giant hospital-centre in closed military town Mirny, deep into faraway forests in Arkhangelsk Oblast.
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
The best part of "peace plan" is part of Russian seized assets go to "developing US-Russia trade".
Which is euphemism for "Donald takes his bribe".
Which is euphemism for "Donald takes his bribe".
November 21, 2025 at 7:41 AM
The best part of "peace plan" is part of Russian seized assets go to "developing US-Russia trade".
Which is euphemism for "Donald takes his bribe".
Which is euphemism for "Donald takes his bribe".
Authorities have again shut down the mobile internet in Arkhangelsk and Severodvinsk. Air traffic in Kotlas (southern Arkhangelsk region) is halted for "security reasons".
29.ru/text/world/2...
29.ru/text/world/2...
В Архангельске пропал мобильный интернет — горожане жалуются на отключение
Не грузятся сайты и приложения
29.ru
November 20, 2025 at 5:37 PM
Authorities have again shut down the mobile internet in Arkhangelsk and Severodvinsk. Air traffic in Kotlas (southern Arkhangelsk region) is halted for "security reasons".
29.ru/text/world/2...
29.ru/text/world/2...
Very good, adequate response by Poland. Hopefully, Oslo will one day understand that Russia's provocation consulate in Kirkenes should follow down the same lane.
Poland to close Russian consulate in Gdańsk over rail sabotage: FM
Poland will close the Russian consulate in the Baltic city of Gdańsk over recent sabotage attacks by Moscow on the Polish rail system, Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said on Wednesday.
www.polskieradio.pl
November 19, 2025 at 10:04 AM
Very good, adequate response by Poland. Hopefully, Oslo will one day understand that Russia's provocation consulate in Kirkenes should follow down the same lane.
One of the most shameful moments in American modern history.
Trump on Jamal Khashoggi: You're mentioning someone that was extremely controversial. A lot of people didn't like that gentleman…Whether you like him or don't, things happen. But he[MBS] knew nothing about it. You don't have to embarrass our guest
November 19, 2025 at 4:44 AM
One of the most shameful moments in American modern history.
Nothing to see here. Just another weekend competition for kids in Murmansk. Who are fastest to disassemble & reassemble a Kalashnikov rifle blindfolded.
November 17, 2025 at 11:25 AM
Nothing to see here. Just another weekend competition for kids in Murmansk. Who are fastest to disassemble & reassemble a Kalashnikov rifle blindfolded.
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
Moscow is making great efforts in building its Runet — a closed and strictly controlled Russian internet. The Barents Observer has compiled an overview of what is happening in the Russian segment of the internet
The new Russian internet: closed, censored, and “secure”
The World Wide Web is gradually disappearing in Russia — not only as an information technology, but also as a space of freedom. The Russian state is making great efforts in building its alternative Ru...
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 12, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Moscow is making great efforts in building its Runet — a closed and strictly controlled Russian internet. The Barents Observer has compiled an overview of what is happening in the Russian segment of the internet
🇳🇴 has some strange rules for allied flights. 🇺🇸 P-8s with take-off from Evenes (northern Norway) can track 🇷🇺 subs in Norwegian Sea, but not in international waters north of the Varanger fjord. So, this 🇺🇸 ✈️ tonight comes all the way from 🇮🇸 Keflavik.
November 9, 2025 at 7:03 PM
🇳🇴 has some strange rules for allied flights. 🇺🇸 P-8s with take-off from Evenes (northern Norway) can track 🇷🇺 subs in Norwegian Sea, but not in international waters north of the Varanger fjord. So, this 🇺🇸 ✈️ tonight comes all the way from 🇮🇸 Keflavik.
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
He turned 18, signed a contract, and was dead a month later. Our analysis finds hundreds of teenage recruits among Russia’s war dead, a rise fuelled by relaxing laws and allowing criminal suspects to sign contracts from detention.
Read the full update: en.zona.media/article/2025...
Read the full update: en.zona.media/article/2025...
November 7, 2025 at 4:54 PM
He turned 18, signed a contract, and was dead a month later. Our analysis finds hundreds of teenage recruits among Russia’s war dead, a rise fuelled by relaxing laws and allowing criminal suspects to sign contracts from detention.
Read the full update: en.zona.media/article/2025...
Read the full update: en.zona.media/article/2025...
Nations remain far from meeting the Paris Agreement goal to limit warming to well-below 2°C, according to the UN Emissions Gap Report 2025. Meanwhile, winter is coming here up North.
www.unep.org/resources/em... #ClimateCrisis
www.unep.org/resources/em... #ClimateCrisis
November 7, 2025 at 7:41 AM
Nations remain far from meeting the Paris Agreement goal to limit warming to well-below 2°C, according to the UN Emissions Gap Report 2025. Meanwhile, winter is coming here up North.
www.unep.org/resources/em... #ClimateCrisis
www.unep.org/resources/em... #ClimateCrisis
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
The man who ended USAID is the world's first trillionaire
November 7, 2025 at 2:14 AM
The man who ended USAID is the world's first trillionaire
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
🇷🇺 Consulate General in Kirkenes 🇳🇴 continues to recruit employees from the FSB Border Guard Service. Read about how the Barents Observer discovered Denis Kurilov's covert background.
Meet Denis Kurilov, second person with an FSB background at Russia's Consulate General in Kirkenes
In Kirkenes, the Russian consulate increasingly resembles a branch of the FSB border service: staff without diplomatic status live in the consulate building and appear at official meetings and public ...
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 6, 2025 at 8:52 AM
🇷🇺 Consulate General in Kirkenes 🇳🇴 continues to recruit employees from the FSB Border Guard Service. Read about how the Barents Observer discovered Denis Kurilov's covert background.
Quite a crazy thing to read the transcript from today’s Security Council meeting in the Kremlin. ☢️⚛️🇷🇺
Belousov: 'Appropriate to begin immediate preparations for full-scale nuclear tests at Novaya Zemlya'
The Russian Defence Minister Andrei Belousov made it clear that the test site on the Arctic archipelago can be ready at short notice.
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Quite a crazy thing to read the transcript from today’s Security Council meeting in the Kremlin. ☢️⚛️🇷🇺
The Barents Observer has found one more employee with Russia's Consulate General in Kirkenes coming from the FSB.
Meet Denis Kurilov, second person with an FSB background at Russia's Consulate General in Kirkenes
In Kirkenes, the Russian consulate increasingly resembles a branch of the FSB border service: staff without diplomatic status live in the consulate building and appear at official meetings and public ...
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 5, 2025 at 3:28 PM
The Barents Observer has found one more employee with Russia's Consulate General in Kirkenes coming from the FSB.
A grim example of how 🇷🇺 deliberately blurs out the distance between WWII and today's bestial war. Unveiled in Severomorsk on Tuesday, the monument to warriors fighting in 🇺🇦 partly include WWII uniforms, a Soviet flag and looks similar to those commemorating the Red Army's victory and sacrifice.
November 4, 2025 at 3:33 PM
A grim example of how 🇷🇺 deliberately blurs out the distance between WWII and today's bestial war. Unveiled in Severomorsk on Tuesday, the monument to warriors fighting in 🇺🇦 partly include WWII uniforms, a Soviet flag and looks similar to those commemorating the Red Army's victory and sacrifice.
In my latest opinion piece for the @thebarentsobserver.com, I ask why we believe that a country not capable of producing a decent microchip on its own can make nuclear-powered weapons systems without triggering major accidents.
The Arctic has again become Moscow’s nuclear bluster playground
History is repeating itself.
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 3, 2025 at 6:39 PM
In my latest opinion piece for the @thebarentsobserver.com, I ask why we believe that a country not capable of producing a decent microchip on its own can make nuclear-powered weapons systems without triggering major accidents.
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
New article out in @ejisbisa.bsky.social ! In 2015–16, Russia’s FSB tested migration as a strategic tool in the High North, using state-orchestrated mobility to pressure neighbours, exploit humanitarian norms, and project influence short of war. Read the full article 👇
#OpenAccess
#hybridwarfare
#OpenAccess
#hybridwarfare
#OpenAccess from @ejisbisa.bsky.social -
Implementing a new tool: Russia’s strategic use of migrants towards Norway and Finland 2015/16 - https://cup.org/3WDCbAT
- @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
#FirstView
Implementing a new tool: Russia’s strategic use of migrants towards Norway and Finland 2015/16 - https://cup.org/3WDCbAT
- @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
#FirstView
November 3, 2025 at 11:46 AM
New article out in @ejisbisa.bsky.social ! In 2015–16, Russia’s FSB tested migration as a strategic tool in the High North, using state-orchestrated mobility to pressure neighbours, exploit humanitarian norms, and project influence short of war. Read the full article 👇
#OpenAccess
#hybridwarfare
#OpenAccess
#hybridwarfare
Today's most important read:
"The 2015/16 migration crisis (on 🇷🇺 border with 🇳🇴 🇫🇮) can best be explained as strategic engineered migration and a pilot project of the Russian security services."
By @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
"The 2015/16 migration crisis (on 🇷🇺 border with 🇳🇴 🇫🇮) can best be explained as strategic engineered migration and a pilot project of the Russian security services."
By @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
Implementing a new tool: Russia’s strategic use of migrants towards Norway and Finland 2015/16 | European Journal of International Security | Cambridge Core
Implementing a new tool: Russia’s strategic use of migrants towards Norway and Finland 2015/16
www.cambridge.org
November 3, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Today's most important read:
"The 2015/16 migration crisis (on 🇷🇺 border with 🇳🇴 🇫🇮) can best be explained as strategic engineered migration and a pilot project of the Russian security services."
By @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
"The 2015/16 migration crisis (on 🇷🇺 border with 🇳🇴 🇫🇮) can best be explained as strategic engineered migration and a pilot project of the Russian security services."
By @kaeggen.bsky.social & Jyri Lavikainen
Reposted by Thomas Nilsen
OPINION: For Vladimir Putin and his ex-KGB cohort, threatening with the new reactor-powered, nuclear-capable weapons systems brings Soviet nostalgia back onto the table. A look into history can help elucidating today's escalating Russian nuclear brinksmanship.
The Arctic has again become Moscow’s nuclear bluster playground
History is repeating itself.
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 2, 2025 at 3:27 PM
OPINION: For Vladimir Putin and his ex-KGB cohort, threatening with the new reactor-powered, nuclear-capable weapons systems brings Soviet nostalgia back onto the table. A look into history can help elucidating today's escalating Russian nuclear brinksmanship.
Here comes Khabarovsk, Russia's first serial submarine to carry nuclear-powered giga-torpedoes. #Poseidon ⚛️☢️🤿
Here comes Russia's first serial submarine to carry nuclear-powered giga-torpedoes
The Khabarovsk was launched from the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk on Saturday.
www.thebarentsobserver.com
November 1, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Here comes Khabarovsk, Russia's first serial submarine to carry nuclear-powered giga-torpedoes. #Poseidon ⚛️☢️🤿