"Unthinkable That Anyone Could Threaten Europe's Security"

France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, visited Bodø, Northern Norway, on 14 and 15 September. Together with Norway's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Espen Barth Eide, Barrot was briefed at the Norwegian Joint Headquarters (FOH), among other places, to discuss the tense security situation.

Barrot came directly from the EU Arctic Summit in Rovaniemi, Finland, which took place on Monday.

NATO and Europe have the upper hand

Following his visit to the High North Centre and Nordlab at Nord University, Barrot met French and Norwegian media, including High North News, for an interview.

One of the questions concerned remarks by Poland's Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski during the Yalta European Strategy conference in Kyiv last week. Sikorski said that NATO could swiftly defeat Russia if the alliance were attacked, pointing to NATO's “overwhelming superiority” in air power.

Asked whether Europe is in fact equipped to face Russia, Barrot highlighted the strength of the collective NATO cooperation.

"What is true and very clear is that, together with NATO, we have built the world's most powerful security and defence alliance. Given this alliance's immense strength, it is therefore inconceivable that anyone could threaten Europe's security", he concluded.

Barrot referred specifically to the incident in Lithuania, where a drone recently violated the country's airspace. The drone was quickly intercepted and shot down by an Italian NATO fighter jet.

"This shows that Europeans and NATO are ready to meet any threat, wherever it may come from", he said.

The French minister also gave his full support to Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen after a Russian vessel recently fired two flares at a Danish helicopter. Barrot describes the incident as yet another provocation by Putin intended to intimidate and divide Europe.

"He knows very well that when Europeans stand together, whether in the EU or NATO, there is nothing that can stand against them."

"How will the EU's Arctic security focus align with NATO's?"

"They are very much intertwined, because almost all of the EU countries are members of NATO. So, the priorities of NATO that are set by member states are very closely aligned with the priorities of European countries", says the French minister.

Norway plays a key role

The visit to Bodø is part of a broader French commitment to the Nordic countries and the High North. The minister highlighted Norway as a crucial partner in the EU's Arctic strategy.

"Norway is a very close partner of the EU and plays an important and crucial role in our Arctic strategy, not least when it comes to security."

"This is one of the reasons why I am here in Bodø, following my visit to Rovaniemi. We share a responsibility for Europe’s security", says Barrot.

He points out that France has significantly stepped up security and defence cooperation in the north in recent years, but stressed that the Norwegian-French partnership extends further:

"We have much to gain not only from cooperation in defence and security, but also in economic, cultural and scientific cooperation. Here at the university, there are very promising opportunities for cooperation between France and Norway. This is the spirit of the strategic partnership signed last year, when President Macron visited Norway."

The visit to the Norwegian Arctic was his first visit to Norway as foreign minister.

"I am very grateful that my Norwegian colleague brought me here to Bodø, where we gain insight into how serious the threat to the European continent is, and how important cooperation between the Nordic countries and other European countries, such as France, is for security in the Arctic, Europe and France", Barrot concluded.