Ten north European maritime chiefs have today signed the JEF Northern Navies Initiative in Oslo, Norway, on board British aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales.
The new U.K.-led collective force seeks to boost maritime security in the North Atlantic, the Baltic Sea and the High North.
Ten nations make up the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF): Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and the U.K.
The signing of the agreement will pave the way for closer cooperation, with the aim of aligning training, doctrine and systems to a point where it’s possible to swap everything from ammunition to personnel across participating navies as required.
The RN’s First Sea Lord General Sir Gwyn Jenkins said: “Thank you to my fellow JEF chiefs for joining us to sign this agreement.
“After nine months of hard work, I’m delighted that the JEF Northern Navies Initiative has today taken a huge step forward. Together, we have shown what is possible when like-minded nations are united by a common purpose.”
He added: “In recent years, there has been a recognition – rightly – that the UK and our European allies must step up and defend what we hold most dear. What I hope we have demonstrated today, through this agreement, is that we are doing exactly that.”
Earlier in the day at the same conference Government minister Luke Pollard had announced that the Royal Navy’s first Atlantic Net sensors will be in the water in 2027.
He revealed an initial £90 million deal has been signed with British company Ocean Infinity Solutions to provide maritime surveillance in the GIUK gap, the waters stretching between Greenland, Iceland, and the U.K. which form the gateway between Russia’s Northern Fleet and the North Atlantic.
He also revealed a new deal with Saab UK, which will integrate its lightweight counter-drone Giraffe radar systems into the RN’s new K3 Scout uncrewed surface vessel (USV) fleet to help protect ports and critical infrastructure.
- Read more about today’s Atlantic Net announcement
