Posted on 05/02/2006 4:22:33 AM PDT by Kurt_Hectic
US President George W Bush reportedly doesn't want to meet with Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg. Norway also seems to have lost an influential role within NATO, apparently, some say, because of Norway's lack of enthusiasm for the war in Iraq. Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg reportedly isn't welcome at the White House.
Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) reported Tuesday that Bush's staff had turned down a request from Stoltenberg's office for a meeting between the two at the White House. Bush, according to the report, was too busy to make room for Stoltenberg in the foreseeable future.
NRK reported that Bush's staff wouldn't set up the meeting because of the Norwegian left-center coalition government's criticism of the war in Iraq, and Finance Minister Kristin Halvorsen's support for a boycott of Israeli products.
Jan Petersen, who was Norway's foreign minister in the last center-right government, told NRK that he feared a phone conversation Stoltenberg had with Bush shortly after last fall's election put a damper on relations between the US and Norway. In the conversation, Stoltenberg told Bush that Norwegian officers would be pulled out of Iraq.
Janne Haaland Matlary, a professor at the University of Oslo, said her sources also indicate that Norway no longer is part of the "inner circle" at NATO.
"My contacts in NATO and Washington say Norway was in the innermost circles in NATO, that we were a partner in this inner circle together with the US," Haaland Matlary told NRK. "Now these contacts say we aren't any longer."
Støre 'unaware'
Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre told NRK that he wasn't aware that a request for a meeting with Bush was denied. He maintained that the US continued to be an important ally for Norway, while White House officials claimed Norway also was an important ally for the US.
Indeed, Stoltenberg's government often has been criticized within Norway for being too eager to please the US. On issues ranging from the relocation of the US Embassy in Oslo to mixed signals on whether government ministers will meet representatives from Hamas, Stoltenberg has been accused of being too accommodating to US interests.
This in turn has raised concerns about a rift within his coalition government. Stoltenberg's Labour Party needs to cooperate with Halvorsen's Socialist Left, which has a far more critical line towards the US than Labour. A snub by Bush actually might help Stoltenberg appease the more left-leaning members of his government, and voters, at a time when the conservative Progress Party is leading in the polls.
The former center-right coalition government led by Kjell Magne Bondevik of the Christian Democrats, meanwhile, maintained good relations with Bush, even though Bondevik's government went on record as opposing the US-led invasion of Iraq from the start.
If I remember correctly, Norway did a lot more than simply criticize our war effort in Iraq.
Or what did you have in mind?
What's wrong with Norway is what's wrong with most of "Old Europe" -- they've fallen in love with their Socialist and Center-Left welfare state. What happens in 40-50 years when the North Sea oil reserves (and revenues) begin to run out? Will they want that strong alliance with America again?
If I may respectfully offer some advice to Norway - look at Canada.
The Canadian Prime Minister and members of his party constantly made insulting remarks about President Bush, and worked to undermine his most important goals in the WOT. And, surprisingly to the Canadian Prime Minister, he found it difficult to command Bush's attention.
But now, the Canadian Prime Minister has an excellent relationship with President Bush.
So what changed?
The Canadian voters threw out the lefties!
Hard to fathom Norwegians being the scourage of the world.
But hey I'll bite, No good Norwegians.
Well, in a pinch we could always turn off the oil taps for a few days. $350/bl might get his attention... :-)
So what? Since the recent Trans-Atlantic clash over Iraq NATO is stone cold death anyhow. The broad public (and its leadership) in "old Europe" does not believe in NATO anymore.
Nevertheless I think that this reaction is a littlebit overexaggerated. Other opponents of the Iraq war do not have to deal with such a offending loss of American goodwill. Even Gerhard Schroeder, who was one of the staunchest opponents of Iraq was invited and visited by G.W.Bush. Maybe because Germany is a more important country to the US? Anyway this kind of policy is not helpful.
Hehe! Good point!
I could hope that that would get the attention of our lefty politicians, who might then finally agree to open up ANWR and coastal areas for drilling.
Our home grown leftists wouldn't agree to drilling ANWR or any of our domestic resources if we all sent in pictures of our families burning furniture to keep warm.
Any chance Dubys *genuinely* doesn't have time in the forseeable future??
/sarc off
I see that there are still a lot of Quislings in Norway to this day.
Actually, after Schroeder played the Anti-American card to win in his previous election, Bush refused to return Schroeder's calls or schedule a meaningful visit with him for a very long time.
Glad to see the back of that slimy jerk. Looks like Schroeder is now collecting his paycheck from the Russians for services rendered.
You, sir or mam, are severely misinformed. Please do not smear my country with galling historical falsehoods.
Norway fought for 2 months before the nazis won and installed their puppet prime minister after the King and the government fled to England. Norway was NEVER a "docile servant" of the nazis.
The fact is that most norwegians considers the USA and Brittain its closest allies. But the lefties has to learn that the US responds and it actually has consequenses when the lefties talk about boycott of Israel, pulling out of the war on terror etc. Stimulus -> response.
He's probably thinking of Sweden!
Without Swedish iron ore many fewer panzer tanks would have rolled out of the Ruhrgebiet.
Finland did the same but I think in both instances it was simply go that way or die.
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