Commander of the Army, Lieutenant General Pasi Välimäki participated the working meeting of NATO commanders held in Norfolk during 10-12 February 2026. The commanders discussed at their meeting, among other, Arctic Sentry and topical operational issues.
Arctic Sentry is a mission that reinforces NATO’s presence in the Arctic area by integrating the allies’ operating in the area and forming it into a cohesive operational series. This includes, among other, the Cold Response 26 -exercise that Finland is strongly involved in. The Norwegian-led multinational military exercise will be participated by forces and equipment from the Finnish Defence Forces’ army and air force as well as from other NATO nations.
Cold Response 26 will demonstrate the capability to operate under demanding arctic conditions jointly among allies. A key part of the exercise involves receiving allied forces and becoming operational in Finland. The objective is to improve multinational interoperability and develop readiness to react to varying threats and crisis situations.
- Arctic Sentry will interlink exercise activity of the northern area and strengthen us as an alliance. It is important to us to exercise joint operating by utilising all capabilities by drawing on strengths of each ally. Cold Response 26 will bring to the North thousands of soldiers from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Special Forces from a number of ally nations, Commander of the Army, Lieutenant General Pasi Välimäki says.
Alongside Cold Response, Arctic Sentry will cover also other exercises held by the allies such as Arctic Endurance.
