Rep. McCollum visits Finland, Norway to support allies

U.S. Rep Betty McCollum took a four-day trip to Finland and Norway last week to assess their security needs given Russian aggression in Ukraine.

McCollum, a Democrat representing the Fourth Congressional District that includes St. Paul, is chairwoman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense.

She said her agenda included meeting with officials to discuss how the United States can support them "as Vladimir Putin continues his unprovoked and illegal invasion of Ukraine."

After Putin's invasion in February, Finland and Sweden discarded longtime nonalignment policies and sought to join NATO's mutual defense pact.

President Joe Biden calls the countries "our allies of the high north." The nations are in a region on one of Europe's front lines and are known for their sophisticated militaries. Finland also has a strong tradition of self defense.

McCollum was expecting to review the U.S. and NATO defense posture in Scandinavia and the Arctic.

"As co-chair of the Friends of Norway Caucus in Congress, I deeply value the special cultural relationships that Minnesotans share with Norway and our Nordic allies," she said. "This will be an opportunity to strengthen those bonds as our countries remain united in a shared commitment to protecting our democratic values from Russian aggression."