The President announced important negotiations with Norway

Ukraine and Norway will begin negotiations on bilateral security guarantees. President Vladimir Zelensky announced this following negotiations with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on Telegram on Wednesday, October 18.

“I spoke with Jonas Gahr Støre and thanked Norway for the recent military aid package as well as long-term support. We agreed to start negotiations on a document on bilateral security guarantees based on the G7 Vilnius Declaration,” he wrote.

According to Zelensky, “we also talked about the events on the Ukrainian front line and the priority defense needs of Ukraine. We discussed further strengthening of our fighters, in particular, air defense to protect critical infrastructure and the Black Sea grain corridor.”

“We paid special attention to the Middle East. We agreed that further escalation is unacceptable and called on all parties to avoid civilian casualties,” Zelensky also said.

According to the press service of the president, Zelensky and Stere also coordinated their positions before the upcoming international events.

In particular, the President of Ukraine invited the Norwegian side to take part in the next meeting of national security advisers with heads of state on the implementation of the Ukrainian Peace Formula.

In addition, Zelensky thanked his interlocutor for long-term budget support programs for Ukraine.

“Programs like this are critical because they give us more confidence in the future, facilitate long-term planning, and also send a strong signal to other countries,” he said.

It was previously reported that Norway will increase its defense budget with an emphasis on supporting Ukraine. About $700 million is allocated for these purposes.