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| Europe |
| NATO Arctic bayonet. Norway joined the ranks of Russia's enemies |
| 2023-08-04 |
| Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited. by Mikhail Moshkin and Mikhail Zakharov [REGNUM] Since August 3, Norway has added to the list of countries unfriendly to Russia - this decision was made by the government . In the case of Norway, being included in such a list means restrictions (up to a complete ban) on the ability of an unfriendly country to hire workers in Russia in its embassies, consulates, representative offices of state bodies and state institutions. From now on, these Norwegian representations will be able to conclude employment contracts with a maximum of 27 Previously, similar restrictions were imposed on the diplomatic missions of the United States, the Czech Republic, Greece, Denmark, Slovenia, Croatia, and Slovakia. But, to clarify, the number of countries that Russia now recognizes as unfriendly is much wider - about fifty states, judging by the information on the government website . In addition to those listed, it is expected to include all EU countries, Switzerland, Anglo-Saxon countries (Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand), as well as Japan and South Korea. And even more expected - Ukraine. There are several lists: one of the lists includes states to which retaliatory sanctions are applied, the other includes those against whom diplomatic restrictions are introduced. In the case of Norway, the last straw, apparently, was the expulsion of 15 members of our diplomatic mission to Oslo in April of this year on charges of espionage in the host country. “Russian-Norwegian contacts have been dealt a serious blow. Norway is increasingly confirming the status of a state hostile to Russia, ” the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry , Maria Zakharova, commented then . The decision to include Norway in the status of "unfriendly" in Oslo was perceived, it must be said, rather reservedly. “There is no reason to say that Norway is behaving unfriendly towards Russia ,” Norwegian Foreign Minister Anniken Huitfelt told NRK . She added that both countries, being neighbors, are interested in maintaining diplomatic relations and channels for contacts " not least in difficult times ." Huitfelt explained that she links the current situation with the conflict in Ukraine. SNUFFBOX OF THE WORLD Russia's relations with its Arctic neighbor and at the same time with one of the oldest members of NATO (Norway has been in the alliance since its founding in 1949), it must be said, began to "thaw" just shortly before the start of the NWO. The “ice broke” in the fall of 2021, when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Norway for the first time in two years . Then he met with the current Prime Minister of the country, Jonas Gahr Støre , and with Foreign Minister Huitfelt. The latter, talking with Lavrov, remembered how her grandfather during the years of Nazi occupation was in a concentration camp along with Soviet prisoners of war. The minister demonstrated a family heirloom, a snuffbox, which the Soviet comrades presented to my grandfather, then Kommersant reported. Lavrov, in turn, paid tribute to "how carefully the Norwegian people, the government keep the memory of the feat when the Red Army liberated Northern Norway." The monument to Soviet soldiers in the Arctic Kirkines (which Lavrov then mentioned as an example of such a memory), we note, and now the fate of similar memorials, for example, in Poland, the Baltic states or Ukraine, has not befallen. Yes, and the current Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, judging by his statements, is by no means one of the ideological Russophobes, like the Polish "gray eminence" Yaroslav Kaczynski or any of the Baltic presidents. Back in 2015, as the leader of the opposition Workers' Party, Støre said that " Norway and Russia, which have a thousand-year history of peaceful neighborhood, should maintain good relations." In 2019, he also expressed hope for the development of good neighborliness. In the same year, Lavrov attended a memorial ceremony at the aforementioned monument in Kirkines in the presence of King Harald V and the then leaders of government and diplomacy. Russia did not give its neighbors on the other side of the Arctic border any reason to be offended. In 2010, Moscow ended a long-standing dispute over the division of the Arctic Ocean shelf, giving its neighbors half of the disputed water area (about 175 thousand square kilometers), and Oslo received full control over the 200-mile zone around the Svalbard archipelago, where Russia has historically, according to Soviet-era treaty has special rights. But Norway's historical dependence on its senior NATO partner, the United States, has proven stronger. By the way, we note that the current secretary general of the alliance, Jens Stoltenberg , is precisely a Norwegian who has twice held the post of prime minister. ARCTIC BAYONET OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC ALLIANCE Last year, Norway actually staged a blockade of Russian citizens working in Svalbard. Then the neighbors limited the supply of food from our big land to Barentsburg, a settlement of Russian coal miners in the archipelago. The products, we recall, were supposed to pass through the only checkpoint on the Russian-Norwegian border Storskog. The Norwegian side, without hiding, explained this by observing the anti-Russian sanctions policy. A country that is not part of the EU has adopted sanctions against our country similar to those in Brussels. Oslo leaves no hope of blocking the delivery of goods needed for the normal operation of the Arktikugol Trust. In early April, Norway introduced a new package of sanctions against Russia, similar to the tenth package of the European Union. Further deterioration of relations between the northern country and Russia was and remains rather a matter of time. Some unfriendly steps could be dictated by national egoism. The Norwegians continue to claim access to the mineral resources of the Arctic shelf, as well as the development of hydrocarbon deposits, limiting the rights of Russian companies. But for the most part, this is a consequence of allied obligations, experts say. “Norway traditionally takes an active part in the maneuvers of the NATO bloc near our borders, it is such a northern fist or a northern bayonet of the bloc,” Dmitry Solonnikov , director of the Institute for Contemporary State Development , told IA Regnum . For example, in the spring, the American aircraft carrier Gerald Ford entered Oslo for the first time in 65 years before taking part in exercises with allies in the Arctic Challenge block near the Norwegian coast. Conducting military exercises, Oslo speaks of NATO's readiness to repel an attack on the northern flank of the bloc - and it is not difficult to guess who the Norwegians see as the aggressor. Norway does not lag behind the allies in supplying Ukraine with weapons and ammunition. A month ago, Oslo announced a “donation” for the Armed Forces of Ukraine of three MLRS multiple launch rocket systems and 5,000 ammunition. In June, the Norwegian authorities handed over 22 self-propelled howitzers with ammunition to Kiev. “We must continue to support Ukraine so that it can continue its struggle for freedom and independence,” said the country's defense minister, Bjorn Arild Gram . Obviously, such rhetoric and actions of Oslo do not fit well with statements like "there is no reason to say that Norway is behaving unfriendly towards Russia." The forces that are set on quickly curtailing the confrontation with Moscow are marginal in Norway, they are "squeezed out of the mainstream of the political process, so they will not come to power in the near future," Solonnikov believes. HOPE FOR GEOGRAPHY The development of relations between Oslo and Moscow will depend on the course of the special operation in Ukraine, experts agree. “Relations with Norway, as well as with other states, will be re-arranged after the end of the NWO. When Russia is able to announce its victory, we will re-negotiate with European partners, ” comments Solonnikov. “The reaction of Norway will depend on how effectively and effectively Russia will be able to win within the framework of this conflict. They are very attentive to our achievements and our defeats. Any of our victories will force Oslo to adjust its policy towards Russia, ” said Nikolai Mezhevich , president of the Russian Association for Baltic Studies, in a comment to IA Regnum. However, today the situation with the inclusion of Norway in the list of states unfriendly to us does not look surprising, political analysts say. “The current decision is a confirmation of the status quo that has developed today. This is not a step that changes the situation, it is a step that concretizes the situation,” says Solonnikov. Therefore, an exchange of diplomatic blows becomes almost inevitable. Mezhevich lists circumstances beyond the control of the political situation that cannot be ignored: “Direct neighborhood, a large line of the maritime border, the specifics of the Spitsbergen treaty, environmental problems at the junction of the Atlantic and Arctic oceans.” Geography itself will force the Norwegians to seek mutual understanding with a large neighbor. |
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| Posted by: Skidmark 2023-08-04 09:03 |
| #1 NATO Arctic bayonet. Norway joined the ranks of FTFY, Mikhail and Mikhail. You're welcome. Mikhail |
| Posted by: MikeKozlowski 2023-08-04 08:42 |