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The President in Norway: Allied defense spending must be increased and military industry must operate at full capacity

President of the Republic of Lithuania

February 13, 2023

President Gitanas Nausėda continues his official visit to Norway. Monday afternoon, the President met with the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre, to discuss regional security, defense cooperation and support for Ukraine.

At the meeting, the President underlined that Lithuania highly values friendly bilateral relations existing between Lithuania and Norway and their excellent political, economic and cultural cooperation within the Nordic-Baltic family of countries. Gitanas Nausėda pointed out that in the context of Russia's war in Ukraine, it is necessary for like-minded countries to cooperate closely in defending the ideals of freedom and democracy as well as their values.

The President thanked Norway for its significant contribution to the security of the Baltic region and participation in the NATO forward presence battlegroup in Lithuania. Gitanas Nausėda stressed that both Lithuania and Norway share a border with the aggressor Russia. Therefore, they share the same approach to emerging threats and pay special attention to reinforcing their own security and the security of the eastern flank of NATO.

"Allied defense spending must be increased and military industry must operate at full capacity. We need to do everything to keep ourselves safe and help Ukraine achieve victory as soon as possible - the victory of us all against evil," the President said.

The President and the Norwegian Prime Minister discussed preparations for the NATO Summit to be held in Vilnius next July. Gitanas Nausėda underscored the importance of decisions expected in Vilnius to strengthen the region's air defense, update regional defense plans and increase defense spending. The President also noted that the upcoming NATO Summit would offer a timely opportunity to discuss Ukraine's perspective for Euro-Atlantic integration.