Norway shines up its gift to the UN

PHOTO FEATURE: Sixty years after donating the funds and materials that designed and decorated the UN Security Council Chamber in New York, Norway’s government also helped finance its recent renovation. The “new” chamber officially re-opened last week, in exactly the same style as its Norwegian architect intended. Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide was on [...]

Norway unhappy with Russia and China over Syria

The Norwegian government is holding Russia and China “especially” responsible for preventing the UN Security Council from making serious attempts to halt the violence and killings in Syria. The Norwegian military expert who’s been leading UN forces in Syria, meanwhile, felt forced to leave the embattled country. Major General Robert Mood left Damascus for Geneva [...]

Kofi Annan in and out of Norway

The United Nations’ special envoy Kofi Annan has been working for months to try to end the bloodshed in Syria. This week, however, he flew in and out of Norway on an entirely different sort of mission: Speaking at a conference in Stavanger on fish farming. Newspaper Aftenposten reported that Annan landed in a private [...]

Solheim faces rejection, again

Erik Solheim, the veteran politician and diplomat who lost his ministerial post earlier this spring, now seems to have also lost his bid to become Norway’s new ambassador to the United Nations (UN). He’s taking it in stride, suggesting other opportunities will loom for him. Newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) reported this week that Foreign Minister [...]

Sudan finally allows meeting with jailed aid worker

Norway’s ambassador to Sudan, Jen-Petter Kjemprud, was finally allowed to meet with jailed Norwegian aid worker John Sörbö, five days after he was arrested while on a mine-clearing mission along the disputed border between Sudan and South Sudan. Sörbö, who was working for Norsk Folkehjelp (Norwegian People’s Aid) when he was arrested, is an expert [...]

Sudan accuses Norwegian of spying

UPDATED: A Norwegian aid worker described as an expert at clearing land mines remained in custody in Khartoum on Monday, after being arrested along with several other foreign colleagues by soldiers from Sudan over the weekend. Officials in Sudan have accused him and the others of being spies. Officials at Norway’s foreign ministry in Oslo [...]

Mood to lead UN observers in Syria

The United Nations has, as expected, named Norwegian Major General Robert Mood to lead the UN observers in Syria. Norway’s former defense chief said he couldn’t think of anyone better qualified to do the job. The UN decided just before the weekend to send up to 300 unarmed observers to Syria during the next few [...]