Germany's Scholz attends Nordic summit, vows support for Ukraine

By Leila Nezirevic

LONDON (AA) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met Monday with the leaders of Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Iceland at the Nordic summit in Oslo as the countries are seeking to strengthen defense and security cooperation.

Scholz said Germany and the Nordic countries are "facing the same challenges" and should work on sharing energy resources.

In order to become independent from Russian fossil fuels, "combining forces" to develop renewable energy resources is essential for this, the chancellor said.

Europe’s efforts to free itself from dependence on Russian gas will be “turbulent,” he added.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said Germany will be among the key allies in efforts to deepen cooperation in the north of Europe.

Store said electricity is the key, and “almost everything that can me electrified will be electrified, which means that in the future, we will need more renewable energy.”

At a joint press conference, it was noted that great efforts are being made in terms of renewable energy so that Europe can free itself from its dependence on Russian gas.

“We also stand together to mitigate the global effects of the war unleashed by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin against Ukraine such as worsened food and energy security,” Scholz added.

Scholz said Germany together with its Nordic allies will support Ukraine politically, militarily, financially and through humanitarian means and assistance and also with its reconstruction.

The allies also discussed European security amid Sweden and Finland’s bid to join the NATO alliance.

“Germany is particularly pleased to be able to welcome in the near future two more Nordic partners, Finland and Sweden, to NATO,” Scholz said.

He said the two countries will contribute to the security of Northern Europe, Germany and of the transatlantic alliance.

“We will continue our close cooperation for the benefit of peace and security in our own countries and beyond,” he added.