Last year, a seven-meter-high wooden cross suddenly appeared in the abandoned mine area Pyramiden on Svalbard. Behind the cross stands the Russian state.
The Russian Orthodox cross on a mountain slope was assembled by the Russian state-owned mining company Trust Arktikugol, which, according to Svalbardposten, had not sought permission for the construction.
Not okay, thought the Norwegian authorities of the Arctic archipelago.
After a year of dispute, the Russians have now been proven right. The cross can be erected, but at a location a bit away from the original one.
Kari Aga Myklebost, who researches Russian historical description at the University of Tromsø, believes that the Norwegian authorities did the right thing in avoiding conflict with the Russian state. But Norway should not be naive in this matter, she warns.
The cross is a symbolic political act. We see that the Russians use similar instruments to spread patriotism and nationalism, she says to Svalbardposten.
