The Finnish national airline, Finnair, announced on Monday that it will form a strategic alliance with Qatar Airways to launch new flights from Nordic capitals to Doha, the capital of Qatar.

Since its once-profitable Asian connections via a northern route were cut off by the shutdown of Russian airspace caused by the conflict in Ukraine, Finnair has been looking for alternative commercially viable routes.

The company has said it plans to unveil a new strategy in the coming months to address the uncertain outlook that includes high fuel prices, the pandemic and the Ukraine war, with the company headed for a third straight year in the red in 2022.

Finnair said it would establish “a long-term strategic cooperation” on flights between Doha and Helsinki in Finland, Stockholm in Sweden and Copenhagen in Denmark starting between November and December, while exploring the possibility of expanding the agreement to another unnamed European destination.

“These services will be supported by a comprehensive codeshare agreement with shared passenger and cargo capacity between both airlines,” Finnair said.

Finnair and Qatar Airways are part of the oneworld global airline alliance.