Canada and Portugal have strengthened their long-standing cooperation in North Atlantic search and rescue (SAR) by signing a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Aeronautical Search and Rescue Cooperation, formalizing years of operational collaboration between the two countries.
Signed as Advanced Search and Rescue Exercise (ASAREX) 2026 concluded in the Azores, the agreement reinforces coordination between Canada’s Department of National Defence and Portugal’s Ministry of National Defence in one of the world’s most challenging maritime operating environments.
Canada’s Halifax Search and Rescue Region and Portugal’s SAR Region border one another across a vast stretch of the North Atlantic, making close coordination essential when responding to emergencies far from shore. The new MOU strengthens information sharing, operational coordination, and the development of common procedures and best practices while respecting each nation’s search and rescue responsibilities.
The agreement coincided with the completion of ASAREX 2026, held from July 1 to 12 in Ponta Delgada, Azores. The multinational exercise brought together search and rescue professionals from Canada, Portugal and other North Atlantic partners to train in realistic scenarios involving long-range coordination, maritime distress response and multinational rescue operations.
The training focused on improving interoperability and preparing crews to respond effectively when lives are at risk in remote ocean environments. Canada and Portugal have participated in ASAREX since 2015, using the exercise to strengthen professional relationships, refine operational procedures and capture lessons that support real-world search and rescue missions.
The new memorandum builds on that foundation, reinforcing both countries’ commitment to maintaining readiness and strengthening multinational search and rescue efforts across the North Atlantic.
“Search and rescue in the North Atlantic depends on well trained people, good equipment, trust, interoperability and enduring relationships with allies and partners. This memorandum of understanding with Portugal formalizes a relationship that has been built over years of operational cooperation and exercises like ASAREX, ensuring our forces can respond quickly and effectively when lives are at risk far from shore,” assured Lieutenant-General Steve Boivin, Commander, Canadian Joint Operations Command.
“The signing of this memorandum of understanding represents another step in strengthening the committed cooperation built over the years between Portugal and Canada regarding Aeronautical Search and Rescue. In a context where North Atlantic challenges demand more and more close coordination between international partners, this agreement enhances interoperability, fosters knowledge sharing, and contributes to a more effective joint response, with the mission of safeguarding human life,” said Brigadier-General Francisco Dionísio, Commander, Portuguese Air Force.
