News

After over four years as the Norwegian Permanent Representative to NATO Ambassador kim Traavik bid farewell to his colleagues of the NATO Council on Wednesday 30 June. Read more

Ministers of Defence with armed forces in the North of Afghanistan met in Berlin on 11 May to discuss the transfer of security to Afghan Security Forces. Emphasis was put on the international community's continued engagement in Afghanistan. Read more

More than 60 countries agreed to concrete measures to address armed violence in Geneva on 12 May. Read more

Although there are those who have warned that increased activity and unresolved boundaries in the Arctic would raise tensions, developments in the region are bearing witness to just the opposite. Read more

Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg have called on NATO to support efforts to achieve a world without nuclear weapons. “Our aim is to reduce the importance of nuclear weapons in NATO’s security policy,” said Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Read more

In connection with the forth Strategic Concept Seminar in Washington 22-23 February, Ambassador Kim Traavik, took part in media outreach activities to promote NATO-issues and heighten the knowledge of the organisation. Read more

- There are of course some critical differences between the nuclear disarmament agenda and the agenda that led to the ban on land mines and cluster munitions. But at the same time, there are some key, shared lessons to be learned. For example, experience from humanitarian disarmament should guide us on how to pursue and negotiate disarmament issues in general, Støre said at the opening lecture ... Read more

In his opening remarks during the Strategic Concept seminar "NATO's Partnerships and Beyond" in Oslo 14 January the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Mr. Jonas Gahr Støre, focused on NATO's partners and the need for thir involvement in the process towards a new strategic concept for NATO. Read more

In her address to the Oslo Military Society on 4 January 2010 Defence Minister Grete Faremo focused on a wide spectre of issues - from the High North and Afghanistan to the modernisation of the armed forces and NATO's new strategic concept. Read more

The new strategic concept for the Norwegian Armed Forces is avaliable in english. Read more

“A stronger and broader US involvement in order to ensure development and stability in Afghanistan is important, and this gives direction to the international efforts that Norway is supporting, Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre commented, following President Barack Obama’s presentation of the new US strategy for Afghanistan. Read more

The next seminar in the process towards a new Strategic Concept for NATO will take place in Oslo 14 January 2010. The Oslo-seminar is organised jointly by Germany, Romania, Spain and Norway and will be devoted to NATO’s partnerships. Read more

In the framework of the NATO-Russia Council Norway hosted a seminar on Nuclear Doctrine and Strategy in Oslo 8-10 November. In his opening statement State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Espen Barth Eide underlined that the main goal of the seminar is to strengthen the openness, transparency and dialogue in the field of nuclear policy. Read more

In his introduction at the ”Strategic concept seminar I; NATO’s fundamental security tasks” Luxembourg 16 October State Secretary Espen Barth Eide focused on the “NATO’s role as the primary guarantor for the security of its members”. He underlined that “In a world ripe with unpredictability, the security community dimension of NATO is no less important today than it was in the early days”. Read more

Climate change and the melting ice cap have triggered an increased security related interest for the High North both from the countries of the region and a wider audience. In his speech at the Comparative Politics Conference in Bergen 8 October Deputy Permanent Representative Øystein Bø focused on this increased interest for High North issues and how perceptions amongst various actors and comme... Read more