Sjekkes mot fremføring

Dear all,

Thank you for the invitation! I am glad to be here with you all today to discuss many pressing topics of our time, including the securitization of research and how this affects international cooperation – particularly in the Arctic.

The Arctic is now emerging as a center of great‑power politics. Last year, we could observe (in ‘slow TV’) the Chinese containership Istanbul Bridge on its way from China to Europe. Not along the usual route, but through the Arctic north of Russia, where the ice has melted and entirely new shipping routes are opening up. This will change Norway’s position in the world, it will change trade opportunities, and it can profoundly change the Arctic region.

In this reality, research and knowledge are central. In the Arctic, climate change, security policy tensions, and international economic interests intersect in ways that demonstrate why knowledge remains our most long‑term and peaceful investment.

Academic freedom is under pressure globally, not only in the Arctic – and we must safeguard it wherever it is threatened. But here in the North, many of these issues become especially acute and much more visible.

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On the one hand, we must protect academic freedom and institutional autonomy – the very foundation for pursuing truth and creating knowledge free from short‑term political or economic pressures. On the other hand, we know that research never occurs in a vacuum. It is shaped by societal needs, by funding, and increasingly by security considerations.

This raises the recurring question of how to balance openness and caution in the interest of national security.

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These topics are high on this government’s agenda, including in Norway’s National Security Strategy and in the White Paper on the research system. The White Paper outlines several processes and measures already implemented or planned.

In this work, “research security” and “responsible international cooperation” are key concepts.

In these times, we must strengthen international collaboration, including in the Arctic, where climate change is manifested most strongly. But we must do it in a responsible way.

The research program The Polar Ocean 2050 is an example of how it is possible to safeguard both research security and responsible international cooperation. When we have chosen to prioritize one billion kroner for the program, this is partly to secure a knowledge advantage and a degree of “self‑sufficiency” in knowledge. At the same time, we invite cooperation and to share data and knowledge with institutions and countries that share our values and principles.

I am not saying this is simple. On the contrary, it is very demanding. It raises many dilemmas, and there are no quick or easy answers.

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Together we must learn to navigate this complex terrain. Because this is a shared responsibility.  

Universities are best placed to assess how these requirements must be met in practice — and we see that this responsibility is taken very seriously.

Our role is to set clear expectations, clarifying regulations, and providing updated information. We are working on this along in close collaboration with the universities and other research institutions.

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Dear all,

I want to thank you all for putting such an important and pressing topic on the agenda here today, and a special thanks to the organizer, the University of Bergen, with co-organizer University of Tromsø.  It is through conversations such as these that we learn how to maneuver in a changing landscape, always striving towards keeping our sector as open possible and as secure as necessary.

Thank you!