Germany and Norway will join forces for better defense of Ukraine. They will provide patriots and extend cooperation in key northern Atlantic areas.
Germany and Norway will jointly finance the strengthening of Ukrainian air defense. They will also intensify military cooperation in the North Atlantic. After meeting with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store in Berlin, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said it. TASR reports this based on DPA and AFP reports.
Germany wants to support Ukraine with two other American systems of Patriot air defense. The original plan was to buy two US systems for approximately a billion euros. However, as they are not immediately available, the German army first handers two of its nine patriots to Ukraine and then buys two systems for their own needs. The Store said that the financial contribution of Norway would be considerable in their purchase.
The heads of the German and Norwegian government also emphasized the need to cooperate their naval forces in the North Atlantic. In particular, they highlighted the importance of the waters between Greenland, Iceland and Britain, as well as between the north coast of Norway and the bear island controlled by it and the Svalbard archipelago.
The German and Norwegian armed forces are practicing and patrolling the seas and “working closely within the NATO regional plans”, the leaders said in a statement. Both countries will therefore strengthen “monitoring and control of these strategic areas in order to face potential threats”.
AFP recalls that during the Cold War NATO carefully monitored the waters in the North Atlantic, as these were key routes for Soviet submarines and military ships heading from the Arctic bases to the Atlantic Ocean.
