Norway to ' come under' France's ' nuclear umbrella'

French President Emmanuel Macron confirmed on Wednesday that Norway has agreed to join his initiative for advanced nuclear deterrence cooperation. ‘Prime Minister, you have agreed for Norway to join what we call’ advanced nuclear deterrence,’ ’ Macron said during a press conference with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store. ‘This is a crucial step in our partnership and will drive highly ambitious cooperation,’ he added.

Earlier, the Norwegian PM stated that the country would come under France’s ‘nuclear umbrella’ but emphasised that nuclear weapons would not be deployed in Norway during peacetime. InMarch, Macron announced France’s move into an ’ advanced nuclear deterrent’ era, which involves increasing nuclear warhead numbers and allowing European nations to participate in joint exercises. Macron also stated eight European countries — theUK, Germany, Poland, Netherlands, Belgium, Greece, Sweden, and Denmark — would join this ’ doctrine’.