The UK and Norway intend to operate together to counter the Russian undersea threat through a major new defence agreement.
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Press Release, Whitehall, 04 December 2025: [Extracts from] UK critical infrastructure will be protected from Russian submarines through a first-of-its-kind defence agreement that will see British and Norwegian navies operating side-by-side in the North Atlantic.
The agreement comes as the Prime Minister welcomes Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Støre to visit RAF Lossiemouth today. During the visit, the leaders will meet UK and Norwegian troops working together and thank them for their service over the Christmas period. The leaders will also hear firsthand from P-8 maritime patrol aircraft crews who have been tracking Russian vessels operating in UK waters – including the Russian intelligence ship Yantar, detected just weeks ago on the edge of UK waters north of Scotland.
The new Lunna House Agreement will see the Royal Navy and Royal Norwegian Navy operate an interchangeable fleet of British-built Type-26 frigates. It follows a 30% increase in Russian vessels threatening UK waters in the past two years. At the heart of the agreement is the new joint fleet of Type-26 anti-submarine warfare frigates – eight British and at least five Norwegian – backed by the biggest British warship deal in history [see Editor’s footnote]. The £10 billion deal between the UK and Norway, signed in September, is a major boost to British shipbuilding and supports over 4,000 high-skilled British jobs.
Named after the Scottish headquarters of the Norwegian resistance during the Second World War – Lunna House in the Shetland Isles – the agreement builds on 75 years of UK-Norway cooperation – both founding NATO members.
Defence Secretary John Healey and his Norwegian counterpart Tore O. Sandvik are expected to sign the agreement at 10 Downing Street today. Following the signing, they will visit the Maritime Capability Coalition in Portsmouth – a jointly led initiative focused on delivering vital training, equipment, and infrastructure to bolster Ukraine’s maritime operations and strengthen its ability to operate at sea.
The powerful and advanced Type 26 warships will patrol the strategically vital gap between Greenland, Iceland and the UK, monitoring Russian naval activity and defending critical infrastructure such as underwater cables and pipelines, which carry vital communications, electricity and gas.
Both navies will operate as one – sharing maintenance facilities, technology and equipment to create truly interchangeable forces able to deploy rapidly wherever needed.
The agreement will also see:
- UK joining Norwegian programme to develop motherships for uncrewed mine hunting and undersea warfare systems.
- Year-round training of Royal Marines in Norway, preparing them to fight in sub-zero conditions.
- Royal Navy adopting advanced Norwegian naval strike missiles.
- Deeper collaboration on Sting Ray torpedoes, helping to boost munitions stockpiles.
- Joint wargaming between our Armed Forces.
- UK and Norway leading NATO’s adoption of autonomous systems in the High North.
The Lunna House agreement will also see deeper industrial collaboration between the UK and Norway, supporting skilled jobs while enhancing warfighting readiness. The new agreement confirms that the UK will join Norway’s programme to develop innovative offshore support vessels, which will act as motherships for uncrewed mine hunting and undersea warfare systems.
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Editor’s Footnote: The Royal Navy’s first Type 26 frigate is expected to achieve Initial Operating Capability in 2028 and the first of the planned Royal Norwegian Navy Type 26 frigates is expected to enter service in 2032.
