STOCKHOLM, October 14. /TASS/. Russia’s consulate general in Barentsburg on Spitsbergen, Norway, suspends offering consular services from October 15.

"From October 15, 2024, services of the Russian consulate general on Spitsbergen will be temporarily limited due to technical problems until further notice. Offsite consular services will be temporarily suspended also in Longyearbyen and Pyramiden," it said on its Telegram channel.

The Svalbard Archipelago (known as Spitsbergen Archipelago in Russia) is Norway’s territory. Under the Spitsbergen/Svalbard Treaty of 1920, its signatory nations enjoy the right to carry out economic activities on the archipelago’s islands and build necessary infrastructure. The treaty also grants visa-free entry for their citizens. Russia’s Arktikugol coal mining enterprise has been operating on the island on Spitsbergen since 1931. It owns a territory of 251 square kilometers. Barentsburg and Pyramiden are Russian settlements on Spitsbergen.