Jelena Romanov (above) communes weekly from Zapoljarny to her new job in Kirkenes. Her husband works in the mine in their home city. Jelena a philologist and considers her job at Thon Hotels a chance to learn Norwegian.
Border region passes will be of great importance for cooperation in the Norwegian-Russian border area. This is how it will work:
Source: Communications advisor Marte Lerberg Kopstad, Norwegian Foreign Ministry
”The main drivers for high north development is climate change which comes as a consequence of increased human activity, the administration of the rich natural resources in the area and the development of Russia and the Norwegian-Russian relationship. The treaty on maritime delimitation and cooperation with Russia, signed on 15 September 2010 in Murmansk, represents a milestone and shows what is possible to achieve through close cooperation with our large neighbour through long-term negotiations based on modern international law. The agreement gives us a border at sea and opens up great opportunities for cooperation on sustainable administration and development of natural resources in the Barents and Polar Seas." writes Norway's Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre in his foreword to the Foreign Ministry's report ”Status of the High North Allocation October 2010.
There was a 33 percent increase in Russian students in Norway from 2009 to 2010. There are now 1,035 Russian students in Norway, more than Swedish students (814) and German ones (777).
Source: Universitas.