Norway is planning to extend military police authority to the remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen, citing a deteriorating security environment and the prospect of increased allied activity in the region.
The Norwegian Ministry of Defense has submitted a draft proposal that would bring the uninhabited volcanic island under the scope of the country’s existing Military Police Act. The proposal, now open for public consultation, would allow the station commander on Jan Mayen to establish and enforce a military area and intervene to prevent or stop violations of the law.
Located about 500 kilometers east of Greenland, Jan Mayen hosts a small, rotating contingent of Norwegian armed forces and serves as both a military and meteorological outpost. It also has an airstrip used for occasional military flights and logistical resupply.
Isolated territories into potential flashpoints
Officials say the move reflects growing strategic concerns in the Arctic, where climate change and geopolitical tensions are turning previously isolated territories into potential flashpoints. Norway has already announced plans to link Jan Mayen and Svalbard to the mainland via an undersea fiber-optic cable, further underlining the islands’ rising importance.
The Arctic has become an increasingly sensitive area for NATO and Russia. A 2020 visit by US Air Force personnel to assess Jan Mayen’s airfield drew criticism from Moscow, which called it destabilizing. More recently, security analysts have warned that nearby Svalbard could be vulnerable to confrontation.
While Russia remains a central concern, Scandinavian intelligence agencies have also broadened their threat assessments. Denmark last week, for the first time, identified the United States as a potential security risk, following President Donald Trump’s repeated expressions of interest in Greenland.
Jan Mayen island in North Atlantic ocean // Shutterstock