The United Kingdom has announced the establishment of a new multinational maritime force of Northern European to strengthen deterrence against Russia.
The announcement was made by First Sea Lord Gwyn Jenkins, who, speaking at RUSI on Wednesday, expressed his ambitions to evolve the existing Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) into a more integrated “partnership of Northern Navies.”
The initiative would focus on defending Northwest Europe, the North Atlantic and the High North against Russian activity, Jenkins explained.
The JEF is a UK-led coalition of 10 Northern European nations created after 2012 to enable rapid military response to regional crises. Its members are the United Kingdom, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Finland, Iceland, and Sweden.
In his speech, Jenkins said that he already held a meeting with naval chiefs from across Northern Europe during which a statement of intent was signed committing participating nations to develop detailed proposals.
“We know we have no time to lose… by the end of this year, I want us all to have signed a formal declaration, laying the foundations for what will be a vital and enduring partnership for many years to come,” Jenkins stated.
The proposed maritime force would remain closely aligned with NATO structures, aiming to complement rather than duplicate the alliance’s capabilities. Jenkins stressed that deeper integration is needed to generate sufficient “collective combat power” and maintain credible deterrence along what he described as an “open sea border” with Russia.
The First Sea Lord said Russia remains the gravest threat to UK security, noting that the Royal Navy had disrupted Russian submarine activity outside UK territorial waters “while the world’s gaze was fixed on the Middle East”.
The naval chief highlighted a rise in Russian incursions into UK waters of almost a third over the past two years, with multiple Royal Navy responses required in 2025 alone to support homeland defence against Russian surface vessels.
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