Norway warns of Russia’s interest in coastal infrastructure — Interia

Norway’s counterintelligence service, PST, has reported increased attention from state services to threats facing Norway’s coastal and maritime areas. As Interia reports, Russian intelligence services of the aggressor state have for years monitored Norwegian and allied activities, as well as military capabilities in Norway.

Interest in ports and cables

According to PST, Russian services seek to collect information on infrastructure, technology and activity along Norway’s coast. The service believes this could allow them to identify gaps in the security system. Civilian vessels may be used, among other things, to conceal intelligence activities.

PST chief Jon Fitje Hoffmann told Norwegian public broadcaster NRK that various states have considerable interest in the Arctic and northern regions, primarily Russia, as well as China. According to him, the Russian side is trying to obtain data on Norwegian ports, communications cables and several thousand kilometers of oil and gas pipelines. Such information may be used to map infrastructure and potentially prepare sabotage actions.

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PST urged reporting suspicious activity

The service also stated that ships and vessels may rehearse scenarios at sea in order to test Norway’s preparedness and its crisis response system. Information about the reaction of Norwegian services, PST warned, may subsequently be used for intelligence, diversionary and sabotage activities.

PST urged people to report unusual vessel routes, unusual equipment, suspicious activity, discrepancies in crew lists, as well as the presence of ships near Norwegian or allied military exercises.