Russian nukes and spies in the Arctic, with The Barents Observer  episode artwork

EPISODE · Jun 19, 2026 · 46 MIN

Russian nukes and spies in the Arctic, with The Barents Observer

from Mildly Alarmed · host Mildly Alarmed

In this episode, Anastasiia and Karen-Anna speak with Atle Staalesen, the founder of the Barents Observer, to discuss Russian interests in the Arctic, and how Moscow is leveraging its military and civillian assets in the region for war against the West. If you want to support our show, go to our Buy Me A Coffee page at http://buymeacoffee.com/mildlyalarmed Email us at [email protected] with any guest feedback, suggestions, and questions.  Mentioned in the show:“Inside an Arctic Town on the Frontline of Russian Hybrid War” from Lawfare: ⁠https://shorturl.at/9jyQp⁠ “Russia’s Espionage War in the Arctic” from The New Yorker: ⁠https://shorturl.at/YaEyL⁠ “Orthodox church from Severomorsk wanted to study Kirkenes water supply” from the Barents Observer: ⁠https://shorturl.at/ojiOi⁠ “A Deep-Diving Sub. A Deadly Fire. And Russia’s Secret Undersea Agenda.” from the New York Times: ⁠https://shorturl.at/iY0nN⁠ “Forget Greenland: This Arctic NATO Island Already Has a Russian Presence” from the Wall Street Journal: ⁠https://shorturl.at/FSN8u⁠ Credits: Anastasiia Lapatina is Ukraine Fellow at Lawfare. She writes a weekly newsletter about Ukraine called Yours Ukrainian. She is based in Kyiv. Karen-Anna Eggen is a Senior Researcher and the Head of the Programme for Ukraine and Full-Spectrum Threats at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies. She is based in Oslo.Fabian Hoffman is a Senior Research Fellow at the Programme for Ukraine and Full-Spectrum Threats at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies. He is the author of the Missile Matters newsletter about defence, missile technology, and nuclear strategy. He is based in Oslo.Minna Ålander is an Analyst at the Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. She’s also an Associate Fellow at Chatham House and a Non-Resident Fellow at CEPA. Minna also writes a newsletter about European security called Northern Flank Notes. She is based in Stockholm.The podcast is engineered by Anthony Bartaway, who is also the co-host of a podcast called Ukraine Without Hype: / @ukrainewithouthype  

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jun 19, 2026

In this episode, Anastasiia and Karen-Anna speak with Atle Staalesen, the founder of the Barents Observer, to discuss Russian interests in the Arctic, and how Moscow is leveraging its military and civillian assets in the region for war against the West. If you want to support our show, go to our Buy Me A Coffee page at http://buymeacoffee.com/mildlyalarmed Email us at [email protected] with any guest feedback, suggestions, and questions.  Mentioned in the show:“Inside an Arctic Town on the Frontline of Russian Hybrid War” from Lawfare: ⁠https://shorturl.at/9jyQp⁠ “Russia’s Espionage War in the Arctic” from The New Yorker: ⁠https://shorturl.at/YaEyL⁠ “Orthodox church from Severomorsk wanted to study Kirkenes water supply” from the Barents Observer: ⁠https://shorturl.at/ojiOi⁠ “A Deep-Diving Sub. A Deadly Fire. And Russia’s Secret Undersea Agenda.” from the New York Times: ⁠https://shorturl.at/iY0nN⁠ “Forget Greenland: This Arctic NATO Island Already Has a Russian Presence” from the Wall Street Journal: ⁠https://shorturl.at/FSN8u⁠ Credits: Anastasiia Lapatina is Ukraine Fellow at Lawfare. She writes a weekly newsletter about Ukraine called Yours Ukrainian. She is based in Kyiv. Karen-Anna Eggen is a Senior Researcher and the Head of the Programme for Ukraine and Full-Spectrum Threats at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies. She is based in Oslo.Fabian Hoffman is a Senior Research Fellow at the Programme for Ukraine and Full-Spectrum Threats at the Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies. He is the author of the Missile Matters newsletter about defence, missile technology, and nuclear strategy. He is based in Oslo.Minna Ålander is an Analyst at the Stockholm Centre for Eastern European Studies at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs. She’s also an Associate Fellow at Chatham House and a Non-Resident Fellow at CEPA. Minna also writes a newsletter about European security called Northern Flank Notes. She is based in Stockholm.The podcast is engineered by Anthony Bartaway, who is also the co-host of a podcast called Ukraine Without Hype: / @ukrainewithouthype

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Russian nukes and spies in the Arctic, with The Barents Observer

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Sledging Room India Today Podcasts A weekly India Today podcast, Sledging Room is a sports show which will hold discussions related to sports, especially cricket. This is a podcast with a difference, a podcast where tempers will flare and participants, to put it mildly, are not always polite. For your weekly dose of sporting hostilities, this is your final destination. Sledging Room will dissect views and bring in new perspectives with a dash of irreverence. Life on the B Side Maria Life on the B Side is where the raw, real, and often humorous side of Gen X life gets talked about. Hosted by Maria, this podcast dives into the ups and downs of being a grown-up whose A Side played out in the 90s.With a mix of personal stories, (mildly questionable) advice, and reflections on how life has changed since the 80s and 90s, tune in for stories that resonate with anyone who’s walked the line between cassette tapes and smartphones.If we learned anything from B sides, it’s this: don’t underestimate them. You might just find a hidden gem, and they’re always worth a listen. The Farmer Tan Podcast Jake in the 308 Climb up in the cab and ride a round or two with Jared and Jake on the Farmer Tan Podcast, as they strive to be both entertaining as well as mildly informative. The boys offer an unique perspective on production agriculture, ag retail, being dads, and following their Christian faith. Leave the farmer on farmer hate to social media, and tune into this high performance, low input program. It'll be like running race gas in your weed eater (typical results may very). Imagine Jihad (part 3) by WMDRock Weapon of Musical Defense WMDRock WMDRock aka Weapon of Musical Defense is a group of concerned rockers and rock stars. After 9-11 we were horrified at the hate & exhortations to violence we read in the Koran so we began learning more about what Winston Churchill called “the religion of blood and war”.We started writing songs and studied to be certain of the facts, all the time becoming more alarmed. Now we want to share our findings with a wider audience. Imagine Jihad is the first album to result from our work.The album was first released in 2007 and then re-issued in 2014.

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In this episode, Anastasiia and Karen-Anna speak with Atle Staalesen, the founder of the Barents Observer, to discuss Russian interests in the Arctic, and how Moscow is leveraging its military and civillian assets in the region for war against the...

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