Exclusive: Norway’s chief of defence Eirik Kristoffersen, who served in Afghanistan, was critical of Trump’s claim Nato troops stayed off frontlines
Norway’s army chief has said Oslo cannot exclude the possibility of a future Russian invasion of the country, suggesting Moscow could move on Norway to protect its nuclear assets stationed in the far north.
“We don’t exclude a land grab from Russia as part of their plan to protect their own nuclear capabilities, which is the only thing they have left that actually threatens the United States,” said Gen Eirik Kristoffersen, Norway’s chief of defence.
He conceded that Russia does not have conquest goals in Norway in the same way as it has in Ukraine or other former Soviet territories, but said much of Russia’s nuclear arsenal is located on the Kola peninsula, a short distance from the Norwegian border, including nuclear submarines, land-based missiles and nuclear-capable aircraft. These would be crucial if Russia came into conflict with Nato elsewhere.
“We don’t take that off the table, because it’s still an option for Russia to do that in order to make sure that their nuclear capabilities, their second strike capabilities are protected. That’s sort of the scenario in the high north that we plan for,” he said.
