Satellite imagery and NATO monitoring suggest Russia has deployed its most advanced nuclear-powered submarines — Severodvinsk, Arkhangelsk, and Kazan — from their base near the Norwegian border as a U.S. carrier strike group trains off Norway’s Lofoten archipelago. British media reported that NATO scrambled more than a dozen patrol aircraft to hunt a suspected Russian submarine near the Gerald R. Ford.

NATO Surveillance Efforts

From Sunday, NATO surveillance aircraft have flown from bases in Scotland, Iceland, and Norway, focusing on the suspected shadowing of the U.S. carrier. Norway operates five of the U.S.-built P-8 Poseidons, which can deploy sonobuoys to detect submarine propellers at depth. Norwegian F-35s also trained alongside U.S. F/A-18s in joint sorties with the carrier group.

Russia’s Quiet Hunters

The Yasen-M class submarines are considered Russia’s most advanced, capable of carrying torpedoes and cruise missiles while operating with extreme stealth. Their absence from port at Zapadnaya Litsa, just 60 km from Norway, confirms heightened submarine patrol activity in the Arctic. The submarines’ maneuvers coincide with broader Russian naval activity in the Barents Sea.

Strategic Context

The U.S.-Norway naval drills are part of a steady expansion of NATO presence in the High North. They come ahead of Russia’s massive Zapad-2025 exercise with Belarus, expected in September. Both sides frame the deployments as defensive: Norway’s military said the exercises demonstrate “interoperability in the High North environment,” while U.S. Navy statements stressed commitment to the Euro-Atlantic region.