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Nordic countries

Nordic countries
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Nordic countries. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Pituffik Space Base, formerly Thule Air Base, with the domes of the Thule Tracking Station, is pictured in northern Greenland in October 2023. Photo: AFP
Donald Trump

Vance’s Greenland trip puts spotlight on US space base at the top of the world

The remote Arctic facility protects the US against threats from Russia – the shortest route for Moscow’s missiles is via the North Pole.

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Norway

Exclusive | ‘We have to collaborate with China’: Norwegian diplomat on options in Trump era

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Denmark

Denmark ramps up defence spending, saying Russia is threat to all of Europe

Crime

Sweden mourns victims of deadliest shooting, gunman’s motive still unknown

Police say there was no evidence that suspect – named as Rickard Andersson, 35 – had ‘ideological motives’ for the attack that left 11 dead.

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People light candles at a makeshift vigil near Campus Risbergska in Orebro, Sweden, on Wednesday. Photo: AFP
Crime

At least 11 killed at school for adults in Sweden’s worst mass shooting

The gunman was among the dead, but damage at the scene was so extensive that investigators were unable to give a conclusive final toll.

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Donald Trump

‘We don’t want to be Americans,’ Greenland PM says, as Trump takes office

Denmark’s foreign minister said that no country should be able to simply help themselves to another country.

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Ukraine war

F-16 jets on the way to Ukraine from Denmark and the Netherlands

The US-built aircraft will be flying over Ukrainian skies this summer, as Kyiv seeks to bolster its air defences against Russian attacks.

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An F-16 fighter lands at a Turkish air base in the city of Konya in September 2004. Photo: AP
Wellness

How nudge theory gently persuades people to change their eating habits

Eating plant-heavy diets will help us reduce greenhouse emissions, and nudge theory – small interventions and gentle persuasion – is being used to persuade people to change their habits.

Tourism

What it’s like to fly into Israel as a tourist during the Gaza war

Our correspondent got a small taste of the frustrations and cost blowouts caused by the Israel-Gaza war after finally finding a ‘cheap’ flight to Israel’s Ben Gurion airport this month.

Nordic nations

Sweden expels Chinese journalist deemed ‘serious threat to security’

The unnamed 57-year-old woman, was arrested by the Swedish security service in October and expelled by the government in Stockholm last week, Swedish broadcaster SVT reported.

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Sweden has expelled an unnamed Chinese journalist, saying the reporter was a threat to national security, Swedish media reported on Monday. Photo: Shutterstock
Singapore

Singapore ex-minister S. Iswaran slapped with fresh corruption charges

The new counts involve about US$14,200 worth of valuable items the ex-politician allegedly obtained, including bottles of whisky, golf clubs and a bicycle.

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S. Iswaran, Singapore’s former transport minister (centre) leaves the Singapore State Courts on Monday after more corruption charges were filed against him. Photo: Bloomberg
United Nations

New report reveals the world’s happiest countries ranked

Nordic nations retain their grip on the top spots, with Afghanistan and Lebanon at bottom of 143 countries surveyed. Mainland China was ranked 60, with Hong Kong at 86 and self-ruled island Taiwan at 31.

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Wellness

The key to happiness? It’s within us, one of world’s happiest people says

How to be happy? The author of Happy As a Dane: 10 Secrets of the Happiest People in the World shares 10 secrets from the country of her birth, Denmark, regularly ranked among the world’s happiest.

Performing arts in Hong Kong

Review | Heavy metal meets orchestral sound in Bright & Black, with mixed results

Hong Kong Arts Festival show with a rock concert vibe features pieces orchestral in scope composed by Nordic metalheads and performed by multinational Baltic Sea Philharmonic.

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Conductor Kristjan Järvi and The Baltic Sea Philharmonic, which performed Bright & Black with heavy metal cellist Eicca Toppinen during the 2024 Hong Kong Arts Festival. Photo: courtesy of Sunbeam Productions
Ukraine war

Ukraine war: EU faces challenges finding gunpowder raw material from China

The scarcity of gunpowder, which goes into propellant charges that hurl artillery shells over distances of tens of kilometres, has hamstrung Ukraine’s military campaign.

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Police officers inspect an artillery shell in the front line town of Orikhiv in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia region on February 28. Photo: Reuters
Nato

‘Historic day’: Sweden set to join Nato after Hungary approves bid

Sweden clears the last hurdle to join Nato, ending the Nordic country’s long history of neutrality and military non-alignment.

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Profile

‘A gift I’d been given’: climber’s 3am epiphany and a Hong Kong high

Swedish climber Matilda Soderlund tells Kate Whitehead about honing her competitive spirit as an infant, finding her life’s passion in an instant and getting engaged at sunset atop Kowloon Peak.

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Singapore

‘Chump change’: netizens poke fun at Singapore ex-minister’s corruption scandal

Some compare the case with the 1MDB scandal with one saying “a corruption case gets you promoted” in Malaysia.

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Former Singapore minister S. Iswaran was slapped with 27 charges on Thursday. Photo: Bloomberg
Singapore

Singapore minister S. Iswaran resigns after being charged with taking bribes

Iswaran, widely credited for bringing Formula One racing to the city state, faces a possible jail term of up to seven years if convicted.

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Hong Kong society

Opinion | How bold, innovative policy can make Hong Kong more family-friendly

The government’s list of incentives for Hongkongers to have more children is well-intentioned but insufficient to reverse the city’s demographic decline. Instead, it should look for a blend of tax allowances, means-tested credits for child-raising expenses, subsidised childcare and family-friendly workplaces.

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Huawei’s Finnish health lab boosts fitness

Huawei’s new European health lab conducts tests in quest to improve people’s fitness

The company is conducting real-life testing of its wearable fitness devices at its new facility in Finland, a country chosen for its love of sport and its academic institutions specialising in sports science.

In partnership with:
Huawei
Telecommunications giant Huawei has three health labs equipped with hi-tech simulators to test the functionality of its fitness wearables.
Ukraine war

Zelensky and his wife visit Sweden, condemn deadly Russian strike

Zelensky was in Stockholm – along with his wife Olena Zelenska – where he signed an agreement with the prime minister for production of a Swedish tank, and condemned Russia’s recent attack on the city of Chernihiv.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena Zelenska during a state visit to Sweden. Photo: AFP
Architecture and design

Europeans warm to air conditioning as heatwaves become more common

As climate change causes summer temperatures to soar in Europe, some who were once disdainful of air conditioning are reconsidering. But using more air conditioners would heat city streets even more.

Greece

Europe wildfire risk spreads to French Riviera

A high risk zone in southern France will include much of the coast and inland areas between Marseilles and Nice, with parts of Italy and Spain also threatened.

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Extreme weather

‘Hell on Earth’: thousands more evacuated as Greece ‘at war’ with fires

Some 30,000 people fled the flames on Rhodes at the weekend, the country’s largest-ever wildfire evacuation.

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A firefighter watches as a wildfire burns on the island of Rhodes. Large fires have broken out throughout Greece, which has been suffering a prolonged drought. Photo: dpa
Nato

President Biden welcomes ‘incredible’ Finland to Nato

Ahead of a bilateral meeting with Niinisto, Biden hailed Finland as an asset to the military alliance, ‘I don’t think Nato has ever been stronger’, he said.

US President Joe Biden and Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto during the US-Nordic Leaders’ Summit Meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland, . Photo: EPA-EFE
Nato

Nato says no timetable for Ukraine to join, a decision Zelensky deems ‘absurd’

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday blasted as “absurd” the absence of a timetable for his country’s membership in Nato.

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Nordic nations

‘Shadow war’: Russian spy ships planning North Sea sabotage, report says

Dozens of military and civilian vessels are being used to gather information on European energy infrastructure, a probe by Nordic public broadcasters shows.

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