Venstre and Frp ready for new defense agreement – VG
FRP leader Sylvi Listhaug and Liberal leader Guri Melby say straight out that Norway must spend more money than planned on the Armed Forces. The backdrop is both Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the officers’ alarm about the lack of weapons and ammunition.
– A completely new situation for Europe’s security means that we obviously have to invest more in defense. There must be an increase in the defense budget, and it must be greater than what is in the Armed Forces’ long-term plan, says Guri Melby to VG.
Sylvi Listhaug is completely in line with Melby:
– The defense and the government must make a quick assessment of what can be done in the very short term. We must report major shortages of weapons and ammunition in all seriousness, and the FRP expects the government to come to the Storting soon. The current defense plan does not take into account the current acute situation with the invasion of Ukraine, says the FRP leader.
Urgent meeting
This winter, the government appointed a cross-policy defense commission to assess security and defense policy choices and priorities for the next 10 to 20 years. The report will not come until May 2023.
But now the commission’s leader, former Minister of Justice Knut Storberget (Labor Party) has urgently summoned the commission to an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday.
– We affected the strength of the acute situation after Russian attacks on Ukraine. Therefore, the commission is now meeting to be updated on current affairs, Storberget tells VG.
However, he does not think there will be a quick interim report. The committee has a deadline of May 2023:
– We are a commission that must look at long-term challenges, but is affected by what is happening in Europe right now, says Storberget.
Officer requirements
On Tuesday morning, Torbjørn Bongo in the Norwegian Officers ‘and Specialists’ Association sounded the alarm in VG:
** The Norwegian Armed Forces is in chronic shortage of weapons, ammunition, uniforms and spare parts. And there is a lack of personnel to order and fill up the warehouses.
** It will cost an unknown number of billions of kroner to fill up – far beyond the two billion in annual growth that is included in the adopted long-term plan for the Armed Forces.
Danish settlement
– The Storting must receive information quickly about what needs can be met in the short term. Then we know that acquiring heavier materials takes time. But I miss that the Norwegian government is showing the same action as the Danish government has shown in recent days, says Sylvi Listhaug.
She points to it the Danish defense settlement between the Social Democratic Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and four other parties in the Folketing on Sunday.
The parties in Denmark, which have a large majority in the Folketing, are, among other things, the only ones that the Danish defense will receive 7 billion kroner extra in 2022 and 2023.
– We are definitely ready to sit down, and I am absolutely sure that other parties in the Storting are ready to participate in similar talks, says the FRP leader.
Guri Melby also supports ideas for a broad defense policy settlement:
– The Liberal Party is ready to have a discussion between the parties about this, says the Liberal Party leader.
More than planned
The Conservatives are also considering a larger defense budget:
– We must probably spend money on defense and we had planned in some areas, Conservative leader Erna Solberg told NTB on Monday.
– Ammunition and equipment for storage can be procured quickly, while heavy weapon systems take longer, Conservative defense spokesman Hårek Elvenes explains to VG.
– But I assume that the equipment that Norway has given to Ukraine’s armed forces will be quickly repurchased. It should almost happen by itself, he says.
Going to Denmark
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre (Labor Party) will meet his Danish colleague Mette Frederiksen in Copenhagen.
On Thursday, he said this in the Storting:
“I have asked the Minister of Defense to quickly start work so that the government can already in the spring session come to the Storting with our assessments and recommended measures. Among other things, we will look at immediate measures to strengthen the Armed Forces’ ability to react and ability to receive from allies. “