We, the Prime Minister of Norway and the President of Ukraine, met in Oslo today, 14 April, to advance efforts to develop a strategic partnership, as agreed in Kyiv on 25 February.
In the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and heightened geopolitical instability, we have agreed to deepen our defence and security cooperation as a key component of our strategic partnership.
We aim to strengthen our defence readiness, enhance our mutual defence capability, and contribute to the long-term stability and security of Europe.
We affirmed our commitment to mutual support in the event of emerging security threats or armed aggression, including crisis coordination and consultations, in line with national legislation, existing commitments and in close coordination with trusted partners. In addition, we agreed to accelerate ongoing work to ensure robust security guarantees for Ukraine in the framework of the Coalition of the Willing.
Norway reiterated its commitment to enhance Ukraine’s defence capabilities, including through continued military assistance and cooperation on advanced capabilities, prioritising air defence, the maritime domain, drones and autonomy, sustainment and logistics support, as well as the Nordic-Baltic-Polish Land Warfare Initiative Task Force Legio.
Recognising the critical importance of sustaining and furthering Ukraine’s drone capability and technological edge in the fight against aggression, Norway will continue to support strategic drone initiatives.
We will work together to ensure that Ukraine is able to provide the required drone supply to its defence units and develop mid-strike, deep-strike and interceptor unmanned aerial vehicle capabilities, also providing learning, data and know-how to Norway. We will explore how Ukrainian technology and the Ukrainian drone industry can support Norwegian security and supply in the long term.
Ukraine’s extensive combat experience is a valuable asset, not only for defending its own sovereignty and territorial integrity, but also for contributing to the shared security of the Euro-Atlantic community. Learning from Ukraine’s experience in modern and high-intensity warfare, including the use of unmanned systems, electronic warfare, air defence and maritime capabilities, remains a key priority for Norway.
We will work together to incorporate lessons learnt across our Defence Forces – in defence planning, investment and research – to enable the identification of possible doctrinal upgrades.
Particular emphasis will be placed on rapid adaptation of training and exercises based on real-time battlefield developments. We will ensure that lessons learnt are swiftly incorporated into operational planning and force preparedness. Ukrainian instructors will be invited to training and research arenas to contribute to development, training and education programmes.
Recognising that our defence industries play a significant role in sustaining deterrence and defence capabilities, we agreed to further strengthen our defence industrial collaboration. We will support industry in developing a joint defence-industrial and technological base, including joint production, co-development and the establishment of distributed production capacities in Ukraine and Norway.
Such cooperation will be grounded in real battlefield requirements, based on innovative solutions, and designed for speed of relevance, scalability and resilience. It will be implemented in accordance with applicable national legislation and international obligations, including export control regimes.
We will emphasise the development and fielding of integrated, multi-layered air defence capabilities as key to our security and defence. We will engage partners and work together to ramp up air defence missile manufacturing capacity and join efforts to accelerate the development of anti-ballistic missile capabilities in Europe.
Furthermore, we will cooperate on supply and scalable procurement of critical defence capabilities, including unmanned systems, missiles, energetic materials, electronic warfare systems, and ammunition, supported by scalable and long-term commitment.
We recognise the need to rapidly increase the production capacity in Europe and provide a framework for our defence industries that enables closer cooperation. We will work towards closer integration between our industries to facilitate technology transfer, joint R&D, exchange of knowledge, experience and security of supply for our mutual benefit.
We both share a common goal to increase cooperation through the Ukrainian initiatives known as “Build in Ukraine” and “Build with Ukraine”. We will work to support and expand existing projects under these programmes and explore new opportunities, both in Ukraine and in Norway. We are pleased that Ukrainian drone production is now being established in Norway.
We underlined the importance of regional formats for defence cooperation, including the Nordic-Baltic Countries and The Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), as key platforms for strengthening security cooperation in Northern Europe.
We will continue to strengthen our partnership and advance security and defence cooperation in a structured, practical, evolving and forward-looking manner. The commitments laid out in this declaration represent the first step in the development of the Strategic Partnership.
