The governor of Svalbard notified the Arcticugol Trust, a Russian mining company in Svalbard.
It was Russian Orthodox bishop Jakov of Naryan-Mar and Mezen, known as a Putin supporter, who led the installation of the cross.
– The northernmost Orthodox cross in the world is installed on the slope of Mount Pyramid. (…) The rebirth of the pyramids continues!, wrote the Arcticugol Trust on its Instagram page in connection with the event.
The bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church made headlines especially last year, as many believed they helped legitimize the war in Ukraine. Among other things, they sat in the front row when Putin addressed the National Assembly.
Read more about when Russia put the cross in the case below:
“Informing” Russian settlements: – Testing Norway
Decorated with military symbols
The cross was carried up the mountainside by about ten people, and was approximately seven meters above the ground.
The bishop walked at the front, while the director of the state-owned mining company, Ildar Neverov, formed the vanguard of those carrying the cross.
The bishop consecrated the cross and named it after St. George. It is also decorated with a black and orange St. Patrick’s Day ribbon. George, which today serves as a military symbol, was used to signify aggressive imperialism and Russkij Mir – the Russian world.
The same color is often used to draw the famous Z symbol on military vehicles and weapons.
Svalbard is subject to Norway, which has sovereignty over the archipelago. However, the settlements of Barentsburg and Pyramiden are mainly inhabited by Russians and Ukrainians, as the Russian state-owned company Arcticugol Trust has mining operations in Barentsburg.
– Dramatically
At the forum with Putin
Dagbladet has sent a request to Ildar Neverov, director of the Arcticugol Trust, but has not yet responded. Requests to the company’s marketing department also went unanswered.
On the company’s official Telegram channel, they stated that Neverov was in Vladivostok to attend the Eastern Economic Forum. He took part in a panel debate on Monday, entitled “Sanctions as an opportunity for development”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin also attended the forum.
Dagbladet has obtained access to a document sent by the Arcticugol Trust to the Governor on July 27, in which they report that in July it is planned to install a memorial in the form of an Orthodox cross in the mountainous area near Pyramiden.
On August 5 this became a fact, but now the Governor asked the Russians to remove the cross.
Norway yes for Russian travel
– In accordance with statutory regulations
When Dagbladet wrote about the erection of the cross, the press service of the Arcticugol Trust said that they were operating within the law.
In an earlier notification of the cross removal order, sent by the Governor on August 27, Russia was given two weeks to respond to the notification.
They believe that the message sent by the Arcticugol Trust to inform them about the cross was flawed and unclear, and point out that it also did not contain an assessment of whether the action was in accordance with the Pyramid site plan. They also wrote that “the cross was of such a size that it was mandatory to implement it.”
“The governor knows that all the crosses were installed without permission and installed in cultural, natural and outdoor heritage areas. “The Mayor hereby warns that the cross must be removed from its current location,” they wrote further.
Russia must now apply to install the cross elsewhere, and the Governor explained that this cannot be done until approval is obtained.
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