Operation Silver Fox

Operation Silver Fox (German: Silberfuchs; Finnish: Hopeakettu) or the Murmansk operation (Russian: Мурманская операция) from 29 June to 17 November 1941, was a joint German–Finnish military operation during the Continuation War on the Eastern Front of World War II against the Soviet Union. The objective of the offensive was to cut off and capture the key Soviet port of Murmansk through attacks from Finnish and Norwegian territory. The operation had three stages. In Operation Rentier ("Reindeer"), German forces advanced from Norway to secure the area around Petsamo and its nickel mines. Operation Platinum Fox (Platinfuchs; Platinakettu) was an attack from the north by Mountain Corps Norway, as XXXVI Mountain Corps and units from the Finnish III Corps attacked from the south in Operation Arctic Fox (Polarfuchs; Napakettu) to cut off and capture Murmansk by a pincer movement. The German–Finnish forces took some ground but Murmansk was neither cut off nor captured and continued to operate as an important destination for Allied Arctic convoys throughout the war.