The future of NATO

Norway enters into nuclear arms agreement with France

Norway will enter into France's so-called nuclear arms umbrella, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre tells Norwegian media.

- We are living in the most serious security situation since World War II. That is why the government has a security strategy to give Norwegian security more legs to stand on, Støre says in a statement according to TV2.

Støre signed the agreement with French President Emmanuel Macron during a dinner on Wednesday evening.

The Norwegian Prime Minister also says that the United States is Norway's most important ally, but that the country now wants to forge stronger ties with European allies.

The "nuclear arms umbrella" means that France protects European partners with its own nuclear weapons. In this way, a nuclear attack on Europe is to be deterred.

According to Støre, the position on not having nuclear weapons on Norwegian soil in peacetime is unchanged. There are also no obligations in the agreement regarding financing of French nuclear weapons development, says Støre.

Information: US wants to cut NATO support during crises

The US wants to reduce the number of warships and bombers available to support NATO countries in crises, according to information to the German Der Spiegel. The message about the cuts is said to have been conveyed to representatives of several member states during a meeting in Brussels last week.

Sources to Reuters state that, among other things, this involves halving the number of bombers and that NATO will no longer be assisted with submarines. According to Der Spiegel, the US will provide more information about the cuts during a NATO meeting in early June.

US President Donald Trump has long criticized other NATO countries for not contributing enough to the alliance, according to him.