The Arctic Century
The Arctic Century is an independent non-profit organization established by
joint efforts of the international experts. We cover the most recent
developments in science, business, and technologies, as well as key
political and economic trends across the Arctic in the form of news,
features, opinions, and articles.
Editor's Pick
The Battle for Uranium on the Kalix River
An American company with no public website has won two exploration permits along Sweden's protected Kalix River, months after the Riksdag lifted both the uranium mining ban and the municipal veto. Local residents, the Sami Parliament, and Kalix municipality object—and the economics suggest the project's real purpose may not be commercial at all.
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Most Read
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France's 2026–2030 Polar Strategy: Between Strategic Projection and the Structural Limits of Arctic Power
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Sweden Buys Military Ships for Open-Ocean Naval Operations
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France in the Arctic: A Commitment Without a Strategy
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Finland Sets EU Unemployment Record Again
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Norway Plans to Drill Oil and Gas in the Exclusion Zone
Why Is Karelian Birch So Hard to Grow?
Karelian birch is worth its weight in gold and nearly impossible to grow on purpose. Why does the republic that named the wood earn nothing from it?
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Swedish Ninth-Graders Lost a Year of Reading
Swedish 15-year-olds lost a full year of reading ability in three years, and the rest of the Nordics fell with them. The minister blames screens.
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2 minutes
France in the Arctic: A Commitment Without a Strategy
France's Arctic commitment is real. But does Paris move only when Russia, NATO, or Greenland force it—and borrow the means to get there?
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4 minutes
“One thing is certain: beneath their hats, including cowboy hats, caps, berets, Balmorals, Glengarry caps, and most likely kilts, politicians on both sides of the ocean were sweating profusely yesterday.”
The EU Opens Its Doors to Reluctant Greenlanders
Brussels put 1.5 billion kroner on the table in Nuuk. But membership is still Greenland's call—and Trump and Beijing are bidding for the same island.
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Finland Sets EU Unemployment Record Again
Finland's jobless rate hit 10.5 percent in July, the worst in the EU. The economy is growing again—so why are companies still not hiring?
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Iceland Loses Fight Against Organized Crime
Around 20 organized crime groups now operate in Iceland, half again as many as a decade ago, and in 2025 alone the police registered nearly 140 large-scale smuggling cases and found 36 potential victims of human trafficking. A Justice Ministry bill published on September 2 would redefine what counts as a crime group, double the maximum penalty to eight years, extend pre-trial detention to six months and let police search seized phones, confiscate unexplained assets and use facial recognition.
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“The establishment of control over Greenland completely solves the problem of ore and at the same time makes it possible to displace China.”
Norway Plans to Drill Oil and Gas in the Exclusion Zone
Norway is the largest offshore oil and gas producer in the North Atlantic—and its largest polluter. Now LO, NHO, and Offshore Norway want the western parts of Nordland VI, closed by political decision since 2001, added to the annual licensing round. The North Observer on why a country with no post-hydrocarbon strategy is reopening a settled question, and the NRK report on the fight inside the Labor Party.
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Sweden Buys Military Ships for Open-Ocean Naval Operations
FMV has signed a SEK 47 billion contract with France's Naval Group for four FDI frigates, the largest combat ships the Swedish navy has ever operated, with deliveries running from 2030 to 2034. Kristersson and Macron framed the Luleå class as a capability for waters far beyond the Baltic—the North Atlantic and the High North—which raises the question of whose fleet, and whose war, these ships are really meant for.
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