The Svalbard “Doomsday” Global Seed Vault is surpassing 500,000 samples to become the most diverse collection of food seeds in history.

In May last year the Russian fish cargo vessel “Petrozavodsk” ran aground in the coastal cliffs of Bear Island outside Svalbard. The worst scenario for the planned removal of the wreck became reality recently when it broke in two pieces.

Regional contacts with Russia are more and more important for Norway. All three Governors of Northern Norway are heading eastward to strengthen the regions ties with Russia.

The reservoirs for CO2 storage in the Snøhvit field in the Barents Sea have less capacity than expected.

The Foreign Ministers of the Nordic Countries will meet in Copenhagen on Thursday to discuss joint foreign- and security cooperation.

Halvard Rundberg and Ylva Marie Pavval have no beliefs in rising young enthusiasm through endless speeches and boring seminars. They want to address youth through their own language, with reggae, rock’n roll and focus on human rights. All of this will be displayed in a grand rock tour all over the Barents Region in 2011.

Representatives of the Barents Cooperation will on Thursday present a new pan-European initiative on cross-border cooperation to EU Commissioner on Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Stefan Füle.

Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov is appointed new Head of the Governmental Commission for Russian presence on Svalbard.

Rear Admiral Trond Grytting has for several years been the key officer in charge of the Norwegian-Russian military contacts in the north.

The Canadian researcher Dr Aileen Espíritu has accepted the position as new Director of the Barents Insitute in the Norwegian border town of Kirkenes.