On Norway's Arctic border with Russia, a town freezes ties with its eastern neighbour

The border posts of Finland (blue and white), Norway (black and yellow) and Russia (red and green), stand outside the airport of the Norwegian Arctic town of Kirkenes, Norway, May 8, 2022. REUTERS/Gwladys Fouche

KIRKENES, Norway (Reuters) - Kirkenes, a Norwegian town a stone's throw from Russia, was for over three decades a symbol of cross-border harmony in the Arctic. That came to a crashing end when Russia invaded Ukraine. Since then people have been adapting to the new realities.

One is the prospect that neighbouring Finland could join Norway in NATO, with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto expected to say on Thursday it should apply to the military alliance.