Norwegian Radicals Honing Skills in East Ukraine – Norway Security Service

Norwegian right-wing radicals going to fight in the east Ukrainian conflict may acquire skills and determination for violent action at home, the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) warned in a report published Tuesday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The armed conflict in Ukraine has been going on for almost two years. The 2016 threat assessment report confirmed that a number of Europeans, including Norwegians, have travelled to the war-torn region of Donbas to fight alongside both rival forces.

"It is possible that some of these individuals now have the intention and the capacity to carry out violent attacks in Norway," the annual report presented by PST chief Benedicte Bjornland said.

The report stressed, however, that the appeal of the conflict among Norwegians was very limited. "Unless the conflict acquires a clearer ideological basis," it is unlikely to attract many Norwegian fighters to Donbas, the report said.

It warned about foreign fighters establishing right-wing extremist networks with radicals in Norway and other countries.

A ceasefire has been in place along the line of conflict in eastern Ukraine since February 2015. It was renewed last September and has generally been holding ever since, although the parties to the conflict have blamed each other for occasional shooting.