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Narvik, Finnmark, Svalbard

Port in northern Norway on Ofotfjord, east of the Lofoten and Vesteralen islands. Narvik, which has an ice-free harbor, exports iron ore from the Swedish mines at Kirunavaara and Luossavara. A rail link from the mines was built before the First World War and there is also a road to Sweden. In 1940, the port, which was used by the Germans as a naval refueling base, was the scene of a Second World War battle. A British fleet, headed by the battleship Warspite, sailed into the fiord and sank nine German destroyers for the loss of two British ships.

Finnmark (Finmarken)

Northernmost county of Norway and strategically important to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which has military installations here, because of its border with Russia. Its inhabitants include Lapps and Finns, and the main occupations are fishing, raising reindeer, farming and iron mining. Vadso is the county capital.

Svalbard

Arctic Ocean archipelago covering 62049 km2 (23 958 sq miles) due north of mainland Norway. The name means 'the cold coast', Discovered by Vikings in 1194, and then rediscovered by the Dutch navigator William Barents in 1596. Svalbard became a centre for international whaling in the 17th century. Norwegian sovereignty was recognized internationally in 1920 and became effective in 1925. The islands are now demilitarized, but signatories of the 1920 convention have the right to mining concessions - which is why there is a Russian coal-mining operation on the main island, SPITSBERGEN.