Spy Games in the Arctic: Russian Border Tour by Minivan

Kirkenes has been a front-row seat to some of the most unusual espionage of the past century. The KGB ran a recruitment bar just across the border. A Norwegian border inspector was befriended for years by an FSB officer – and ended up in a Moscow prison. A Wagner mercenary crossed the frozen Pasvik River in the middle of the night and collapsed on Norwegian soil. Russian fishing trawlers still dock in the harbour today, in one of only three Norwegian ports where they’re still permitted.

On this guided minivan tour, we take you through Kirkenes and out to the border. We visit the Soviet Liberation Monument, the Russian Consulate, the harbour, and Skafferhullet – a former border crossing used during the Cold War, where an old guard tower still marks what was once an active gateway between Norway and the Soviet Union. From a viewpoint along the Pasvik River, you can see the Boris Gleb Church on the Russian side of the border, a landmark that played an important role in shaping the border itself. Our final stop is Storskog – the only official land border crossing between Norway and Russia. From there, we return to Kirkenes. Along the way, we share stories from World War II, the Cold War, and the years since – including how the war in Ukraine has changed everyday life in Kirkenes today.

The places look ordinary enough from the outside. We tell you what actually happened here.