ISSN 0804-709X
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THE ROYAL MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Press Division, Oslo
NORWAY DAILY NO. 91-94/94 OeW/SH
DATE: 13 May 1994
NORWEGIAN UN FORCES TO REMAIN IN BOSNIA (NTB)
"Norwegian UN forces will not be withdrawn from Bosnia-Herzegovina
until all the countries with troops in the area have agreed on
this," said Minister of Defence Joergen Kosmo. This was in response
to a statement made on Thursday by the French Foreign Minister to
the effect that another winter of peace-keeping operations in Bosnia
is unthinkable, and that there may be no choice but to withdraw UN
forces unless a political solution to the war can be found within
the next few weeks. Defence Minister Kosmo has not yet considered
withdrawing Norwegian forces, and points out that some progress has
been made, particularly in relations between Muslims and Croatians
in the war-torn republic.
NORWAY TO TAKE PART IN EU MEETING (Aftenposten)
On 25 May, Minister of Industry and Energy Jens Stoltenberg will be
the first Norwegian minister to take part in a ministerial meeting
in the EU. "We have no intention of acting as if Norway was already
a member of the EU, but it is very important for us to take part in
the political process in the EU as soon as possible since we may be
joining it," said Minister of Trade Grete Knudsen. As to the
forthcoming meeting of ministers of energy, Ms. Knudsen's comment
was that of course a major oil-producing nation such as Norway
should take part in forging EU policy. What is more, a final
decision will be made on the controversial EU oil directive at the
meeting on 25 May.
APPLAUDED AS A EUROPEAN (Dagbladet/NTB/Aftenposten)
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland received the 1994 German
"Karlspreis du Aachen" for her commitment to Europe. This is the
36th time the prize has been awarded, the second time it has gone to
a Scandinavian politician and the second time to a woman. "The EU is
developing into the forum for all-European cooperation many of us
have dreamt of ever since the Second World War. We must explain to
as many Norwegians as possible that the EU has incorporated
Norwegian reality into our accession treaty," said the Prime
Minister. She believes it will be possible to reverse the negative
attitude towards the EU in Norway. "I have always believed that it is
possible to prevail with good arguments," she said.
NORWAY TO BUY US MISSILES (NTB)
The US Defense Department informed Congress on Thursday that the USA
is to sell NOK 4.5 billion worth of air-to-air missiles to Norway.
The sale, which is expected to pass Congress without any difficulty,
will enable Norway to upgrade defence installations along the coast
as well as US-produced F-16 aircraft.
NORWAY DISPLEASED WITH ITALIAN CABINET (NTB/Aftenposten)
"Norwegian ministers will not meet Italian ministers with a fascist
past in the Mussolini era," said Foreign Minister Bjoern Tore Godal
during questiontime in the Storting on Wednesday. Five members of
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's cabinet belong to the neo-fascist
party. Godal referred to the fact that the social democratic group
in the EU refuses to meet neo-fascist ministers and was of the
opinion that Norway must take an equally unambiguous stand.
WORTH NOTING
- Foreign Minister Bjoern Tore Godal took up human rights issues with
Chinese leader Li Ruihuan during their meeting in Oslo on Wednesday.
Norway is particularly concerned about the situation in Tibet.
- The municipal sector may receive more than half a billion kroner
more next year. However, Minister of Local Government and Labour
Gunnar Berge believes that local politicians all over the country
can become more efficient and save an equivalent amount.
- The Norwegian Red Cross is donating NOK 6.1 million to relief
operations conducted by the International Committee of the Red Cross
(ICRC) for victims of the fighting in Rwanda and refugees fleeing
from the conflict.
- According to a survey conducted by the Norwegian Federation of
Trade Unions, one in every six or seven employees starts a new job
every year.
- 169,749 persons, or 7.9 per cent of the workforce, are without
ordinary jobs in Norway today. Unemployment has gone down by 4,704
since last month.
- Norway has to pay back NOK 400 million to NATO's jointly funded
infrastructure programme. The demand from NATO came as a complete
surprise to the Standing Committee on Defence.
TODAY'S COMMENT:
We have no difficulty sharing the concern showed by Foreign Minister
Bjoern Tore Godal and Socialist Left leader Erik Solheim about the
members of the neo-fascist party MSI who are part of the new Italian
cabinet. However, in question time in the Storting on Wednesday,
Foreign Minister Godal opened the door slightly for Mr. Solheim's
new standards of political correctness. He promised that Norway
would not meet Italian ministers with a past in the Mussolini era.
As this ended more than 50 years ago, time has already dealt with
the problem. (Aftenposten)
Date: 16 May 1994
WHALING UNLIKELY TO RESULT IN US BOYCOTT (Aftenposten)
The likelihood of a US boycott of Norway because of whaling is
decreasing. The Clinton administration will require more stringent
scientific evidence that whale stocks are threatened before
implementing a boycott. US media are, however, most concerned
with confidential documents on whaling which have leaked out of
the administration. According to US News and World Report, Vice
President Al Gore has instructed the US whaling commissioner to
approve the Revised Management Procedure (RMP) at the meeting
of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Mexico at the
end of May. More rigorous requirements for scientific evidence
before the USA implements a boycott will make it more difficult to
adopt a boycott of Norwegian whaling.
ASKING FOR HELP ON KOLA (Aftenposten)
Nuclear waste and the nuclear threat in northern regions will be at
the top of the agenda when Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland
meets US President Bill Clinton tomorrow. Norway will request help
in cleaning up. While Norwegian prime ministers previously
discussed the Russian military threat with US presidents, the topic
given priority today is nuclear waste in the wake of the Cold War.
BERNTSEN CALLS FOR REDUCED CONSUMPTION (Aftenposten)
Thorbjoern Berntsen is in over his head again. Now, in the middle
of New York, he is preaching about reducing private consumption.
The world's consumption patterns will be at the top of the agenda
when the UN Commission for Sustainable Development (CSD)
convenes in New York today. Mr. Berntsen has been invited as
keynote speaker. There was quite a commotion when the Minister
of the Environment presented his views in February: there would be
no increase in private consumption and Norway's financial profit
would be transferred to developing countries. An important goal for
him is to persuade the US media to accept his challenge and tell
American super-consumers that it's time to put on the brakes.
GAZA MAY EXPLODE (Dagbladet)
A Norwegian warning sounds in the midst of celebrations of liberty.
"The new Palestinian police force in Gaza may have its hands full if
there is no solution to unemployment. The area is like a time bomb
and may explode soon," warns Geir Oevensen, researcher at the
Norwegian Trade Union Centre for Social Science and Research
(FAFO). Most of Gaza's inhabitants are now celebrating their new
self-rule, but problems lurk behind the joyous facade. "Two thirds of
Palestinian men between the ages of 20 and 30 are unable to
support themselves or their families. Half of them could be
described as completely unemployed," says Mr. Oevensen. The lack
of job opportunities in Gaza and Israeli terror actions have closed
off the Palestinians in the occupied territories from the Israeli
labour market. There is an urgent need for more jobs. "Israel will
not suffer appreciable financial losses by excluding the
Palestinians. Politically, however, a stable and peaceful situation
in Gaza is decisive for Israel," says Geir Oevensen.
NORWEGIAN COMPANIES AWARDED CONTRACTS FROM INDIA
(Aftenposten)
The first contracts with India are ready for Norwegian companies
under NORAD's new programme for business cooperation. Seatex, a
company in Kongsberg, has signed a letter of intent with an Indian
electronics firm on the marketing and sale of its products in India.
The agreement is primarily concerned with satellite-based navigation
systems for the offshore industry, harbours and airports. It was
signed at the end of Minister of Development Cooperation Kari
Nordheim-Larsen's recent visit to India. According to a new model
for development cooperation, Norway will discontinue its traditional
country-to-country assistance to India next year and initiate a new
programme for business cooperation with the business and industrial
sector playing a major role.
WORTH NOTING:
- A reduction in interest rates from Norges Bank may be right
around the corner, but it is conceivable that the bank will wait to
gauge the effect of a possible increase in interest rates in the USA,
according to DnB's daily currency report.
- The new Hardanger Bridge would put an effective stop to cruise
traffic in Hardanger, if plans for its construction are implemented.
TODAY'S COMMENT:
At its national congress in Lund, the Swedish anti-EU organization
has set the tone for the campaign to be pursued by the anti-EU
movement up to the Swedish referendum on 13 November. As
expected, they are modelling themselves on the Norwegian anti-EU
movement, with Anne Enger Lahnstein, the "queen of nays," as the
most influential of all. In connection with the national congress in
Lund, the anti-EU movements in Finland, Sweden, Norway and
Denmark have joined forces in an umbrella organization which will
coordinate efforts up to the referendums. This would have been an
interesting initiative if it had also included some sort of
collective Nordic alternative to membership. It will be difficult to
conjure up such an alternative, however. The greatest mystery in this
connection is how the anti-EU movement imagines that a unified
Nordic region can remain outside an EU where Denmark participates
with the full support of the Danish anti-union movement. (Dagbladet)
DATE: 18 May 1994
PROGRESS ON WHALES (Arbeiderbladet/NTB/Aftenposten)
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland hinted that Norway may
support the creation of a protection zone for all whales in the
Antarctic. After her meeting with President Bill Clinton and Vice
President Al Gore in the White House on 17 May, she stated that
this will not happen until a majority in the International Whaling
Commission accept the principle of scientific management. The
Prime Minister had not intended to discuss whaling in Washington,
but questions from US and Norwegian reporters brought the issue
onto the agenda. "The USA still opposes commercial whaling, but we
will cooperate with Norway. We have always felt that policies
should be based on sound scientific principles," said Vice
President Al Gore. Otherwise, the northern regions, developments
in Europe and transatlantic issues were at the top of the agenda.
The concept of international cooperation to deal with nuclear
waste and other problems left by the former Soviet Union in areas
close to Norway's borders have previously been discussed on
various occasions, including the Prime Minister's recent visit to
Japan. During her meeting with Bill Clinton, she put forward a
specific Norwegian proposal to establish a special fund to finance
these efforts.
MP MAY BE COMPELLED TO TALK (Verdens Gang)
The political tussle over the secret services in Norway has taken
a new and sensational turn. The Nygaard-Haug Commission, acting on
behalf of the Government, is seeking a court order to compel
Storting representative Ingvald Godal (Cons.) to break his pledge
of silence because he refuses to disclose his sources. Witnesses
have approached Mr. Godal in strictest confidence and provided
information on alleged underhand operations in the secret
services. The witnesses do not trust the Labour Government's own
investigating commission, partly because some of the information
in their possession would cause a great deal of embarrassment to
the Labour Party. To the knowledge of this newspaper, never before
has the Government (the second, or executive branch of government)
used the judiciary, (the third branch) against the legislature
(the first branch).
NORDIC BATTALION REQUESTED NATO AIR SUPPORT (NTB)
Nordic UN soldiers at the Tuzla airport asked for NATO air support
when Serbian tanks fired on them as they were unloading an
airplane, but their request was turned down by UN officials.
"While we were unloading, we were fired upon. Seven rounds were
fired and three hit quite close, so we just had to get the cargo
unloaded and send the plane off again," said Norwegian Col. Tom
Johansen, commanding officer in charge of the airport.
OSLO TALKS CONTINUE (Verdens Gang)
PLO chairman Yasser Arafat and Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon
Peres are scheduled to continue peace talks in Oslo today.
According to plan, Mr. Arafat is to arrive at Fornebu Airport at
noon today, and Mr. Peres around 1400 hours. They are to be
present when former US president Jimmy Carter honours the
Norwegian organization FAFO for its efforts to achieve peace in
the Middle East.
CHEERING CROWDS ON 17th OF MAY (Aftenposten)
Crown Prince Haakon was cheered like a king when he celebrated the
17th of May in Bergen for the first time. Not since Constitution
Day in 1938 has Bergen hosted a visit by royalty on our national
holiday. Thousands hailed King Harald, Queen Sonja and Princess
Martha Louise in Oslo. There were no major EU demonstrations
anywhere in Norway on the 17th.
WORTH NOTING:
- The development of Norne, Statoil's oil field off the Nordland
coast, is in danger of being postponed on account of uncertainty
surrounding taxation and operating conditions.
- Statoil will soon need a replacement for its Statfjord field,
which will soon be depleted. The Voering Basin may be the
solution.
- 3.6 million burglaries have been committed in Norway in the
course of the past 40 years. The home of every 7th Norwegian has
been broken into, and the car of every 5th Norwegian has been
broken into.
TODAY'S COMMENT:
Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland was told in plain terms by
President Bill Clinton yesterday that the USA is still against
commercial whaling. In a situation in which both countries share
common interests, not least when it comes to Russian nuclear waste
in northern regions, there are signs of flexibility in the US
protests, which have previously been quite hard-hitting. But US
and international acceptance of our modest whaling activity is
still a long way off. The Prime Minister will really encounter
this problem when she meets leading members of the US Congress
today. The Norwegian authorities and whalers are still fighting an
uphill battle despite the fact that the procedures now being
worked out are, according to the Norwegian Whaling Commissioner,
Karsten Klepsvik, so restrictive that in reality they represent
total protection of all species of whales other than minke whales.
(Aftenposten)