Norden, Canada agree to deepen cooperation in defence, economy

The Prime Ministers of Nordic countries and Canada on Sunday agreed to strengthen cooperation in various sectors including defence, security, resilience and green economy.

The Premiers made a joint statement at the Nordic-Canadian summit in Oslo where they discussed security in the Arctic region, Middle East and Ukraine situation and other topical international issues, said an official press release.

Hosted by Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Icelandic Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir took part in the summit.

“It is important for Finland to further deepen cooperation with Canada and our Nordic partners. Shared values ​​and our northern location unite us,” said Orpo.

The Nordic countries and Canada also agreed to intensify cooperation in trade and investment.

“Today we have agreed to deepen cooperation between our countries to ensure the safety, security and sovereignty of our people, and to build prosperous and green economies of the future,” said the Prime Ministers in the statement.

They expressed their commitments to Arctic security, and to ensuring that the people who live in the region can prosper in peace.

“The Nordic countries and Canada are close allies. As Arctic states, we work together to advance security and stability for all Allies in this strategically important region. We are committed to NATO’s effort to bolster the Alliance’s presence, deterrence and defence in the Arctic, and to further developing the strong collaboration to the benefit of all Allies,” the statement added.

In support of collective defence, security and resilience, the Nordic countries and Canada will enhance defence industrial capacity to ramp up defence production, strengthen capabilities, respond to hybrid threats, build resilient infrastructure, and develop interoperable, innovative and dual-use technologies.

“We will continue to collaborate through military missions and activities, such as NATO’s Forward Land Forces in Finland, the Baltic States and Poland where our forces serve to bolster NATO’s eastern flank and to deter Russian aggression,” the Premiers said in the statement.

They agreed to continue unwavering support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russia’s illegal war of aggression terming Ukraine’s security as integral to European and Euro-Atlantic Security.