International Cooperation
The Norwegian Decence Materiel Agency (NDMA) and the Armed Forces cooperate with partners and actors globally in order to gain access to relevant and necessary information, competence and cost-effective solutions.
NDMA is involved in international cooperation in several areas; armaments cooperation through common procurement or sustainment, information exchange or industrial cooperation. Among others NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) who focuses on Lifecycle management and Seasparrow Organization who supports its member nations with Evolved SeaSparrow Missiles block I and II. NDMA is also a member of several user forums such as Leopard-benutzende Staaten (LEOBEN), Navantia Frigate User Group (NFUG) and European Participating Air Forces (EPAF).
The Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO) investigates cooperation opportunities in the armaments area. The Nordic countries are looking at opportunities for common procurement of material, as well as ways to find common cost-efficient solutions for through-life-sustainment of material in a time of decreasing defence budgets and increasing material costs.
NDMA also utilizes international cooperation outside the Nordic sphere in order to take advantage of common solutions concerning defence material, such as the Multinational Fighter Programme of the F-16 fighter jets.
Cooperation like this means extensive contact with other countries' defence sectors, which in itself leads to useful information exchange. Such information exchange can also be formalised, like the Data Exchange Agreements between Norway and the United States of America.
