Norway to allocate over €260m to strengthen Ukraine's air defence

Norway will allocate NOK 3 billion (around €268 million) to strengthen Ukraine's air defences, including the purchase of missiles for Patriot air defence systems.

Source: European Pravda, citing the Norwegian government

Details: The funding will be used to procure air defence missiles for Patriot systems. Under the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) programme, Norway will jointly procure the missiles directly from the US manufacturer of the Patriot system alongside Denmark, Germany and Canada. PURL enables Ukraine's allies to purchase US-made weapons for Kyiv.

The Norwegian government said that given the lengthy delivery times for newly produced missiles, it also plans to purchase missiles from countries with existing stockpiles in order to deliver them to Ukraine as quickly as possible.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said that Ukraine's fight to defend itself is also a fight for Norway's security. He noted that Russia continues to attack Ukraine daily, striking civilians, cities and energy infrastructure. He added that although Ukraine intercepts most drones and cruise missiles, it requires stronger protection against ballistic missiles.

Norway will also provide funding to support Ukraine's initiative to jointly develop anti-ballistic systems with its European partners.

Background:

• Speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that securing interceptor missiles for Patriot systems would be the top priority in discussions with Kyiv's partners, stressing that the missiles can be obtained from countries other than the United States.
• The Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Denmark and Poland have also asked the European Commission to approve the purchase of US-made air defence missiles under the €90 billion EU defence funding package for Ukraine for 2026-2027 as quickly as possible.

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