Nordic transport ministers to meet in conjunction with NATO exercise in Narvik

Minister of Transport and Communications Lulu Ranne will visit Narvik, Norway, from 29 to 30 April 2024. Together with the Norwegian and Swedish transport ministers, she will observe NATO’s Immediate Response 2024 defence exercise, which will practise military mobility and reception of military support.

The exercise is part of the Steadfast Defender 24 drills, in which NATO countries and partners train the Alliance’s ability to reinforce troops up north for the purpose of training a defensive joint operation in arctic conditions in the areas of Finland, Norway, and Sweden. The Finnish Defence Forces will participate in the exercise. 

“Joint defence exercises provide valuable information on the functioning and development needs of the road and rail network and the entire transport system. The exercises are a good basis for identifying infrastructure that we can build and improve together. The Nordic countries can collaborate to create an efficient, safe and secure transport system that will serve the needs of both civil transport and military mobility,” Minister Ranne says.

US troops will arrive in Narvik and move from the port of Narvik to the Finnish Army’s Northern Forest 24 exercise in northern Finland. The troops will use all forms of transport to move to Finland, and some of the transports will be carried out through the Swedish territory. 

The Finnish military and civilian authorities and their Nordic colleagues have prepared both this exercise and the previous Nordic Response 24 exercise together. The Nordic transport ministers and transport authorities have strengthened their good cooperation from the beginning of this government term. 

Inquiries:

Ritva Hautanen, Chief Specialist, tel. +358 295 342 081, [email protected]