Military Buildup On Icy Russian-Norwegian Border Brings Unease

U.S. Marines during a military exercise in Setermoen, in the arctic north of Norway on October 29.

A sign indicating the proximity of the Russian-Norwegian border.

Norwegian soldiers at dusk during an exercise called Reindeer 2. Some 3,000 Norwegian troops and 650 U.S. Marines took part in the maneuvers.

U.S. Marines training in Norway in 2018. Since 2017, hundreds of Marines have been based in the country, a move that reportedly came as a response to Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

Border posts of Finland, Norway, and Russia near the northern tip of Norway where the three countries meet. Military tensions in the area have simmered here after recent military exercises were carried out in both Russia and Norway.

The Norwegian town of Kirkenes, just 15 minutes from the Russian border. Residents of the town can cross the Russian border without a visa. Many go to buy cheaper gas.

A welder inside a shipyard in Kirkenes, which gets most of its business repairing Russian vessels. The owner of the business told Reuters: “I don’t like that they build up the military on both sides of the border.... Here in the north, we work together to reduce tensions. We are trying not to be part of them.”

Across the border, around Russia’s port town of Murmansk (pictured), Russia’s forces have also reportedly carried out maneuvers in recent weeks.
 

A file photo of a Russian nuclear submarine near Murmansk. According to intelligence reports cited by Reuters, Russia recently staged a major submarine exercise in the North Atlantic.
 

A sign featuring Vladimir Putin saying “Dear colleagues, keep clean,” in a factory near Murmansk.
 

Students of the Russian-Norwegian school in Murmansk play volleyball. The school takes 10 students from each country for a one-year course to learn each other’s language and culture.

Christina, an 18-year-old Norwegian studying at Murmansk’s Russian-Norwegian school. A stated aim of the school is to “build a good network for future endeavors across the border…”

Back in Kirkenes, Russian theater choreographer Nikolai Shchetnev (pictured) told Reuters he feels at home in Norway and is considering applying for dual citizenship.
 
 

Rune Rafaelsen, the mayor of the municipality that includes Kirkenes, told Reuters he opposes having “more tanks” on the border with Russia, but that he sees Norway’s NATO membership as "a guarantee that I can do my job."
 

U.S. Marines during the Reindeer 2 joint exercise in October.

U.S. Marines training in Norway. A Norwegian military commander told Reuters: “As a small nation neighboring a superpower, you have to strike the right balance between deterrence and reassurance.”