The Arctic On the Agenda As Norwegian Defense Leaders Visit US Northern Command

Norwegian version.

This week, Norwegian and American defense leaders met at the US Northern Command headquarters in the US. Increased cooperation in the Arctic was among the topics discussed there.

Participants from the Norwegian side were the Commander of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters, Lt. General Yngve Odlo, and the Chief of the Royal Norwegian Air Force, Major General Rolf Folland.

"A strong and close cooperation with our allies in NATO is important for the Arctic security," says Commander of the Norwegian Joint HQ, Yngve Odlo, to High North News.

"The US is our most important ally. The conversations the Chief of the Norwegian Air Force and I had with the leaders of the US Northcom were about continued and increased cooperation, coordinating exercises and activities in the Arctic, and a shared understanding of the security policy situation," he adds.

The US Northern Command is one of the Combatant Commands within the US Department of Defense. The headquarter is located in the state of Colorado.

General Glen VanHerck is the Commander of United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM) and the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), which also has its headquarters at the Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado. NORAD is a joint American-Canadian defense command for the airspace above North America.

"The Norwegian Joint HQ plans and leads all operational activities of the Norwegian Armed Forces. It is therefore natural that the Commander of the HQ has a close and tight cooperation with allied headquarters," says Odlo.

This article was originally published in Norwegian and has been translated by Birgitte Annie Molid Martinussen.