US President Donald Trump and his Finnish counterpart, Alexander Stubb, will meet at the White House on Tuesday with the intention of approving a deal for the US Coast Guard to buy up to four icebreakers built in Finnish shipyards, Reuters reports, News.bg reports.
Trump and Stubb have established friendly relations since the US leader returned to power in January. The two already met in March at the presidential club “Mar-a-Lago“ in Florida, where they played golf.
Trump has repeatedly called for the United States to acquire up to 40 new icebreakers to improve national security in the Arctic and counter the growing influence of China and Russia.
A White House official said the president would sign a memorandum of understanding with Finland to build four "Arctic security boats" in the Scandinavian country. He said it was a necessary national security measure that allows construction to take place outside the United States.
"We will then use the Finnish experience to build up to seven new security icebreakers in shipyards located in the United States," the official said.
A total of 11 Arctic security boats - a new type of medium-sized icebreaker to be used by the U.S. Coast Guard - are expected to cost about $6.1 billion. Three of the ships will be built by Davie in Galveston, Texas, and four by Bollinger Shipyards in Houma, Louisiana.
The first icebreaker is due to be delivered by 2028. The White House says the deals will bring billions of dollars in new investment to the U.S. maritime industry and create thousands of skilled jobs.
The Coast Guard's polar fleet currently has only two operational Arctic security boats.
During their meeting, Trump and Stubb are also likely to discuss Russia's war in Ukraine. After failing to persuade Russian President Vladimir Putin to cease fire, the American leader said he was disappointed with it and that he now intends to increase his support for Ukraine.
Finland is the world's leading manufacturer of icebreakers – about 80% of all existing ships are designed by its companies, and nearly 60% are built in its shipyards. Finnish leaders have long pushed for similar cooperation with the United States, but previous attempts were thwarted by the Jones Act, which gives priority to domestic manufacturers in the American maritime industry.