The background is the tense security situation in Europe, where Norway’s neighbor Russia has gone to war against another neighboring country, Ukraine. – Here we are talking about double-digit billion amounts over several years. A powerful escalation must take place. There must be more for the Army, more for the Home Guard, we must secure the Air Force and the Navy, says Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum to news. – We are presenting our long-term plan, which will be the first plan where NATO’s two percent target is included, adds the Sp leader. Vedum visited Narvik yesterday together with defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen. The two discussed cooperation between health and defense at the new hospital in the city and met school students who will soon join the Armed Forces. In addition, the visit was used to announce a large-scale upscaling of investment in the Armed Forces in the new long-term plan, which will soon be presented. PERCENTAGE TARGET: Chief of Defense Eirik Kristoffersen believes that NOK 50-80 billion is needed until 2028 to cover the needs in today’s long-term plan. Photo: Kristian Skårdalsmo / news Can reach NATO target earlier Since 2014, all NATO members have aimed to spend 2 per cent of their country’s gross domestic product (GDP) on defence. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap) says the plan is to reach the target of 2 percent of GDP on the Defense in 2026, but does not rule out that it could happen sooner. – We started with 2027, now we say 2026. But we will present this long-term plan after Easter. Then we will see exactly when it will be, says Støre in Politisk kvarter on news. – Can it be before 2026? – It can, but our GDP moves more than other countries’. But we must now have an escalation plan. That investment is going to bring us up to where we should be among allies. – So maybe we can reach the two percent target in 2025? – We have said that 2026 is in the plan, but I want to keep it open until we present it. But this is within reach. The reason why Norway’s GDP fluctuates a lot is that oil and gas prices largely affect the Norwegian economy. DEFENSE INVESTMENT: Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum (from left), Narvik mayor Rune Edvardsen and defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen during a visit to Narvik high school yesterday. Photo: Andreas Nilsen Trygstad Closing the gap Vedum and Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp) are now putting the finishing touches on the new long-term plan for the Armed Forces. The proposal is expected just before Easter. Before the summer, Vedum hopes a broad majority in the Storting will have given up on the plan. Defense chief Eirik Kristoffersen is clear about what he wants. – I have said that between NOK 50 and 80 billion is needed to achieve the current long-term plan until 2028, he says to news. CHIEF OF DEFENSE: General Eirik Kristoffersen. Photo: Andreas Nilsen Trygstad Today, the armed forces are struggling with deficiencies in air defence, anti-submarine warfare, the ability to communicate securely and military competence with enough experience, FFI concluded in a recent report. There it was also said that the economic imbalance has become greater compared to the defense analysis in 2023, due to low price compensation in the budgets. Kristoffersen says there is not a great distance between his own analyzes and FFI’s description of the situation in the Armed Forces. – Grants are needed just to close some of the gaps we have. It will then require more investment to focus on new capacities. – Too late The new defense plan will be one of the most important topics when the government discusses next year’s state budget in a couple of weeks. The dialogue on the long-term plan is already underway in the Storting. There have also been murmurs that the government is behind schedule, both with the plan and the allocations. – The government is taking too long to build up the Armed Forces at a time when the needs are enormous, said Frp leader Sylvi Listhaug after FFI came up with its analysis recently. She has advocated an extraordinary investment to strengthen the Armed Forces and has opened up about breaking the rules of procedure for the use of oil money. – The defense analysis shows that current budgets do not meet targets, that material acquisitions are postponed and that necessary maintenance is not carried out in an adequate manner, she says. – Have you taken too long, Vedum? – We have had a sharp increase in the defense budgets after the Conservative Party and FRP left their offices, because we believed, in contrast to Erna Solberg, that it is important to fill up the two percent target. So these will be somewhat empty words, says the finance minister. Solberg was also asked about the percentage target in Politisk kvarter this morning. – I have always thought it was sensible. I sat in on that NATO meeting and was involved in the decision that we should aim for two percent. But the most important thing is that there is a real increase in Norwegian defense capability. Solberg pointed out that her government, with normal GDP growth, set out to reach the target in 2027.
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Promises two-digit billion sum extra to the Armed Forces – can reach percentage target next year – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
