The Barents Observer

The six-hour voyage was completed without operator intervention, according to Murmansk-based NPK Progress, the company that developed the boat. The route is reportedly the longest autonomous voyage yet carried out in northern Russia. The voyage began at Liinakhamari, near the Norwegian border, and ended at Ura-Guba on the Barents Sea coast. Part of the route was in sheltered waters, while the longest stretch took the drone into open waters.

The ministry made the announcement Friday afternoon as part of its latest update to the official register of foreign agents. In a statement, it accused the newspaper of “spreading false information about decisions taken by Russian public authorities and their policies, as well as about the Russian electoral system”.

According to Reuters, China is currently the only recipient of Russian Arctic oil shipped along the Northern Sea Route. However, other countries are likely to follow suit, with Arctic shipments to India reportedly under consideration. This year’s volumes significantly exceed those of last year. In all of 2025, a total of 13 million barrels were exported on the remote Arctic route, Reuters reports on Telegram, citing data and analytics from LSEG.

Norwegian Ambassador to Russia Heidi Olufsen was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Moscow on 3 September, the day after Norwegian authorities seized the Russian vessel Professor Molchanov in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. According to the ministry, Olufsen was delivered "a strong protest against the actions of the Norwegian authorities." Summoned in Moscow. Norway's Ambassador to Russia Heidi Olufsen.

“Professor Molchanov” Svalbard police have confirmed that the Professor Molchanov, the Russian passenger vessel operating a second season of voyages between Murmansk and Barentsburg, has been seized in Barentsburg. Norwegian authorities have seized the Russian vessel Professor Molchanov at the port of Barentsburg in Svalbard at the request of Naftogaz Group, the company said.

Fundamentalists in Belushya Guba. Representatives of the ultraconservative organisations Sorok Sorokov and Russky Krest attended the official opening ceremony of a new cathedral on Novaya Zemlya. An archconservative and xenophobic organisation with ties to the Moscow Patriarchate was represented at the opening of a new cathedral in Belushya Guba, the town that serves Russia’s Arctic nuclear test site.

The scheduled visit to Grøtsund near Tromsø took place on September 1. USS Delaware (SSN 791) arrived in Tromsø on September 1, 2026. The scheduled visit to Grøtsund near Tromsø took place on September 1. The scheduled visit to Grøtsund near Tromsø took place on September 1. In recent weeks, no fewer than four new and upgraded Russian nuclear-powered submarines have drawn NATO’s attention. Two of them are designed to carry weapons that Vladimir Putin hopes could alter the strategic balance.

Russia’s war in Ukraine, uncertainty over the US president’s commitment to NATO and growing concerns over the impact of climate change are turning the Arctic into an increasingly important arena for European security. Against this backdrop, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has invited a group of European leaders to Rovaniemi for talks on Arctic security.

At School No. 36 in Arkhangelsk, the pupils started the new study year by watching video messages by soldiers directly from the frontline in Ukraine. The school’s VK page posted five videos featuring armed men wearing balaclavas. On 1 September, people with criminal records and controversial pasts were among the guests of honour at school assemblies across Russia.

Four vessels from Russia's Northern Fleet have set out from Kola Bay on a voyage lasting several months through the icy Arctic waters, the fleet's press service in Severomorsk reports. The detachment comprises the ice-class patrol ship Ivan Papanin, the large landing ship Kondopoga, the tanker Sergey Osipov and the rescue tug Pamir.