BELFAST — Norway has unveiled a plan to spend an extra 115 billion Krone ($11.8 billion) on defense over the next decade, deeming the additional funding necessary to mitigate against an increasingly “unstable” global security environment.
In a statement announcing the planned uplift today, Oslo said the new money will be added to the revised Long-term Defence Plan 2025-2036, initially approved in 2024. This plus up of cash would put the country on track to reach NATO’s 3.5 percent GDP spending target by 2035, though the national parliament first needs to sign off on the funding change and associated equipment proposals.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre made a clear-eyed case to justify the multibillion dollar increase, saying in the statement that defense equipment costs have risen and the Ukraine war “has given us new insights.”
He added, “We are therefore allocating a significant increase in resources to the long-term plan, while also carefully weighing the priorities needed to rapidly strengthen Norway’s defence capabilities.”
Under the proposal, 31 billion Krone would be spent by 2030, with the remaining 84 billion invested between 2030 and 2035. (Norway’s defense budget for 2026 sits at 180 billion Krone.)
The new funding is set to go directly toward “combat-critical munitions,” including the acquisition of Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile – Extended Range (AARGM-ER) munitions, which will go on Norway’s fleet of F-35 joint strike fighters, according to an online translated version of the document. Norway expects to sign a deal by the end of the year to procure the Northrop Grumman produced missiles, with deliveries expected between 2031-2032.
Elsewhere, Oslo stressed that the additional money will be used to accelerate the pace of phasing in new Type 212CD submarines produced by Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and the acquisition of the first two Type 26 Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) frigates made by UK shipbuilder BAE Systems.
Norway has committed to buying six of the subs at a program cost of $9.69 billion and plans on acquiring at least five of the surface ships, valued at an estimated £10 billion ($13.5 billion).
The Long-term Defence Plan proposal indicates that the “price for the last two [Type 212CD] submarines with associated weapons and weapons integration is higher compared to the first four, which reflects the general price development in the defense market and increased raw material prices.”
It also warns of a key program risk, adding “Several allied nations are considering the Norwegian-German submarine class and have shown interest in the cooperation, which may affect the delivery rate.”
Of note on the Type 26 procurement, the document reveals that the “frigates will be equipped with maritime helicopters with anti-submarine warfare capability as an integral part of the combat system,” but does not disclose which type of rotorcraft will be ordered.
Despite Leonardo reportedly offering AW101 helicopters as part of a “package” alongside the Type 26,Oslo decided against a rotorcraft order when it selected the frigate design.
In the land domain, accelerated development of the Finnmark Brigade, by two years, is also being prioritised. In August 2025, the Norwegian Armed Forces said in a social media post that the brigade “will be expanded and fully operational in 2032.” It is primarily designed to boost NATO’s presence in the Arctic.
Elsewhere, delays and cancellations of other key programs are disclosed in the new planning proposal. “The procurement of helicopters to support the Armed Forces’ special forces and land forces has been postponed,” it notes, while an acquisition of long range, maritime surveillance drones has been axed.
“A possible collaboration with the UK on long-range drones would safeguard parts of the effect that the [cancelled] national procurement was intended to achieve,” added the document, likely referring to Britain’s MQ-9B SkyGuardian aircraft. “In addition, capability is planned to be covered through space-based solutions.”
