Researcher
Karsten Friis
Contactinfo and files
Summary
Dr. Karsten Friis is a Research Professor in NUPIs Research group on security and defence.
His research area is security and defense policies in Europe, with an emphasis on NATO, the Nordic region, the Arctic, transatlantic relations, intelligence, cyber security and the Western Balkans. He has published and led several major projects on these topics. Friis is also a frequently used commentator in the public discourse - not least in relation to Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Friis is a political scientist with a PhD from the University of Groningen, a Cand. Polit from the University of Oslo and an MSc from the London School of Economics. Friis has been associated with NUPI since 2007. Before that, he was a political adviser to the OSCE Mission to Serbia (2004 to 2007), the OSCE in Montenegro (2001) and in Kosovo (1999). Friis was also part of the EU's negotiating team for the referendum on independence in Montenegro in 2006. In addition, Friis has worked for several years in the Norwegian Armed Forces and served at NATO/KFOR in Kosovo.
Expertise
Education
2018 PhD, University of Groningen
1998 Cand Polit, Political Science, University of Oslo
1995 Master, International Relations, London School of Economics
Work Experience
2007- Senior Research Fellow/Senior Advisor/Advisor, NUPI
2004-2007 Political advisor for OSCE, Serbia/Montenegro
2001-2004 Advisor, the Norwegian Armed Forces
2000-2001 Political advisor, OSCE, Montenegro
1999-2000 Analyst/E-off, NATO/KFOR HQ, Kosovo
1999 OSCE Kosovo Verification Mission
Aktivitet
Filter
Clear all filtersHva om USA ikke kommer?
(Op-ed available in Norwegian only): Det hjelper ikke med all verdens våpen om man ikke er enige om når man skal bruke dem. Politiske vinder kan fort snu, skriver Karsten Friis i denne kronikken.
Det klamme toprosent-målet
USAs pågående press på europeiske NATO-land om å bruke minst to prosent av BNP på Forsvaret har som kjent økt i intensistet etter at Trump ble president. Det man ble enige om på Wales-toppmøtet i 2014 var å "arbeide mot å oppnå to prosent innen 2024". Mange land, inkludert Tyskland og Norge, la særlig vekt på "arbeide mot"-delen av setningen. Den forpliktet med andre ord ikke at de to prosentene skulle være nådd innen 2024.
Norway: NATO in the North?
When the NATO allies agreed to deploy troops to the Baltic states and Poland in 2014 to deter against potential Russian aggression, Norway did not ask for a similar arrangement. Despite bordering the heavily militarised Kola peninsula, Norway is now the only NATO country neighbouring Russia without a permanent allied presence. Why is this so? The chapter discusses the background for this policy, which often is summarised in the claim ‘Norway is NATO in the North’, and question if Norway really is NATO in the North in terms of deterrence. The chapter then discuss current Norwegian threat perceptions and various security policy orientations that may contradict each other. For instance, Norway seeks to signal peacetime control and situational awareness of the High North to the rest of NATO, but also to attract allies to training and exercises. Furthermore, Norway seeks to signal both deterrence and restraint, as well as reassurance, to Russia. These different security policies, the chapter argues, may not always be easily combined into a coherent policy.
After Crimea: The future of Nordic Defence Cooperation
Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO) was originally about cost-effectiveness. The Nordic states sought to work together when training and educating their soldiers, procuring new equipment, and logistically supporting their forces. Faced with a relevantly benign security situation at home, with Russia regarded in principle as a partner, operational military cooperation was primarily about expeditionary operations far from northern Europe. Even if NORDEFCO never became the beacon of Nordic cooperation that some political speeches sought to paint it as, it nonetheless provided the Nordics with a flexible and non-bureaucratic framework through which various forms of defence cooperation could be pursued.
Cyber security and the protection of critical infrastructure – an American perspective
Michael Chertoff shares his experiences from his time as United States Secretary of Homeland Security, and he will talk about how we best can secure critical infrastructure against cyber attacks.
Hvordan svare Russland?
(Available in Norwegian only): Militært sett er vår sikkerhetspolitikk ingen reell trussel mot Kola og bidrar ikke til økt spenning i nord, skriver Karsten Friis i denne kronikken.
Nato-toppmøtet alle gruer seg til
(Available in Norwegian only): Sår Donald Trump igjen tvil om USAs forpliktelser i NATO, vil det sende sjokkbølger gjennom alliansen, skrev Karsten Friis før NATO-toppmøtet i juli 2018.
What challenges lie ahead for NATO?
As a run-up to the NATO Summit in Brussels in July, NUPI invites you to this seminar on the challenges NATO is facing.
Science, technology and warfare of the future
How does technology help to change how we percieve the world and how to act in it?...
Cyber-weapons in International Politics : Possible sabotage against the Norwegian petroleum sector
The use of digital weapons is a rising global problem. Society is rapidly becoming more digitalized – and thereby more vulnerable to attacks. These vulnerabilities are increasingly abused by states and other international actors: Information is stolen, and sabotage occurs. Politically motivated digital attacks against petroleum-sector infrastructure represent one such threat, but this has not attracted as much attention by politicians and business leaders as other security challenges in the sector. In an international crisis, Norwegian oil and gas deliveries to Europe could be attacked on a scale far exceeding what the private and public sectors experience on a daily basis. Such attacks could be aimed at stopping or hindering the physical delivery of petroleum, with direct economic, security and political implications beyond the digital domain.This report examines the issue of digital sabotage of the Norwegian petroleum sector by placing the issue in a geopolitical context, by examining previous cases, and by investigating the current security setup in the petroleum sector.