Five Nordic countries on Friday declared they were enhancing their military cooperation, including conducting more joint exercises, in response to what they termed 'Russia's actions,' dpa reported.

'We have to examine Russia's actions, not the Kremlin's rhetoric,' said the defence ministers of Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden along with Iceland's foreign minister.

They said Russia's 'aggression against Ukraine and the illegal annexation of Crimea' showed that Moscow was prepared to 'use military means to achieve its political goals.'