France has signed a new defence agreement with Norway that will bring Norway under France’s emerging European nuclear-deterrence initiative. The agreement was signed in Paris, and marks another step in France’s effort to expand bilateral defence cooperation with European partners as doubts grow over long-term US security guarantees in Europe.
Prine Minister Støre said Norway will participate in France’s nuclear-deterrence initiative, but stressed that no nuclear weapons will be stationed on Norwegian territory during peacetime. Norway remains a NATO member and has traditionally relied on the United States as its main security guarantor, but its direct border with Russia in the Arctic has made the issue of European deterrence more urgent following Russia’s war against Ukraine and growing military activity in the High North.
The agreement follows France’s new doctrine of “forward deterrence”, through which France is offering European allies security guarantees including with its nuclear-weapons capabilities. France is also expanding its nuclear capabilities and has announced the name of its next nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, L’Invincible. France has also signed defence agreements with Denmark and Greece.
Norway has already been deepening its defence relationship with France. Last year, both countries signed a strategic partnership agreement covering security, Arctic cooperation, energy, climate, research and defence cooperation. Earlier this year, Norway and France also agreed to cooperate on military support for Ukraine.
For Norway, the agreement is especially significant because France has Europe’s largest navy and remains one of the continent’s two nuclear powers, alongside the United Kingdom. Norwegian officials have framed the cooperation as part of a wider strategy to strengthen European security partnerships, especially in the Arctic, where Norway faces direct Russian military pressure and where maritime security, undersea infrastructure and energy routes are becoming increasingly strategic.
Watch the full press conference here. Official statement by the Élysée Palace here.
Newsroom
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