King's College London

MI6’s Sir Richard Moore set the scene with his introduction of Admiral Stensønes. He noted the “extraordinarily close” intelligence relationship between the UK and Norway which began 85 years ago when Germany invaded Norway in April 1940 and continues today in the face of current threats:

The presentation to a select audience of British & Norwegian academics and other participants was only the second time the head of a foreign intelligence service has delivered a speech in London. Introducing the two service directors, Professor Bowen noted how this reflects the closeness of these parallel Anglo-Norwegian services and the particular relevance of King’s School of Security Studies: 

A discussion of intelligence cooperation between nations, hosted at King’s, could hardly have taken place against a more relevant geopolitical backdrop. On Monday, the UK’s Strategic Defence Review was released pledging a sustained commitment to defence funding, in which efficiently utilised intelligence between forces is a key factor. Coinciding with Admiral Stensønes’ presentation, Defence Ministers were meeting at NATO in Brussels in advance of the summit in the Hague at the end of June. Less than a month ago, King’s hosted the London Defence Conference on the theme of alliances. And all these events are taking place as we mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War, as summed up by Admiral Stensønes:

Stensønes took the opportunity to address Europe’s role in tackling Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine, thanking Britain for “leading the way” and acknowledging the wider implications of the nature of this war:

The Admiral recounted the history of the connection between UK and Norwegian intelligence services, revisiting key moments and turning points which forged the relationship during those challenging years. Of particular note was the evacuation to London of King Haakon VII of Norway, his family and his government. This led to the establishment of a Norwegian government in exile and gave the two countries the opportunity to combine efforts analysing and leveraging intelligence on Germany’s wartime strategy and movements.

These collective intelligence operations burgeoned over the course of the war. 200 Norwegian agents were trained and deployed, with 1,800 supporters of various kinds operating from over 140 stations and producing over 5,500 reports. The impact of this work was far reaching and critical to the direction of the war. For example, the reporting contributed to sinking battleships like the Bismarck, damaging cruisers and merchant ships, and cutting by 75% the volume of precious iron ore that the Germans were importing from Norway.

He also highlighted Operation Gunnerside – “surely the most successful sabotage operation of the Second World War” – which targeted a hydrogen production factory near Rjukan in Norway to stop Germany producing heavy water that could be used to make nuclear weapons. The mission involved multiple players including a support team who survived for weeks in appalling weather conditions on the Hardangervidda plateau, Joachim Rønneberg who planned and led the operation, and the operational team whose only route home after fulfilling their brief involved skiing hundreds of kilometres from Norway to Sweden.

Gunnerside was just one example of Norwegian and British forces achieving key strategic results through combined effort. Stensønes touched on various others, including the “Shetland Bus” – an ongoing system in which a clandestine special operations group of Norwegian fishermen in their own boats transferred agents and equipment in and out of Norway via Shetland. Almost half lost their lives in the process.

Bringing the focus back to the present day, Admiral Stensønes acknowledged the enduring links between Norway and the UK since becoming founding members of NATO. He observed the growing need for both nations to work just as effectively with other allies as they have done with each other, building on a long-established trust and common way of working.

Questions from the audience were invited after Admiral Stensønes’ talk and included topics such as the war in Ukraine, which he stated is a “privilege and necessity” to support, confirming that there is “great trust” between the Norwegian Intelligence Service and Ukraine.

On the subject of possible security challenges in the Arctic, he observed that Russia is currently behaving “responsibly” in this area but it is likely of increasing interest and has the potential for escalation.

Asked about challenges around recruiting to intelligence services in the present day, Stensønes talked about the NIS’s success in diversifying recruitment styles to support working in modern technology. He also openly acknowledged the enduring cruciality of developing and retaining talent.

This event was coordinated by representatives of the Department of War Studies: Dr Tony Insall, Visiting Professor, and Jessi Gilchrist, PhD candidate, in association with King’s Centre for the Study of Intelligence. Dr Insall has researched and published widely on the subject of intelligence – specifically in Norway – and completed a posting in Oslo during his time working for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. His book Secret Alliances provides a definitive appraisal of Anglo-Norwegian cooperation during the Second World War.