The Norwegian government issued a new appeal on Saturday, calling for the US, Israel and Iran to seek “diplomatic solutions” to their conflicts in order to save civilian lives. Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide didn’t mention how Norway reportedly has made efforts to arrange peace talks between the US and Iran, and now worries the new war in the Middle East will cause even more problems for Ukraine.
The Middle East is in flames,” Eide claimed in a statement released by the foreign ministry. “Two weeks after Israel and the United States launched attacks on Iran, the situation is becoming increasingly dramatic.” Eide noted how at least 16 countries “are now directly affected by the war,” and its consequences are global.
Eide said the World Health Organization (WHO) has verified 18 attacks on Iranian hospitals so far, after “more than 170 people were killed when a girls’ school in the city of Minab was bombed.” He also claimed more than 700 people have been killed and at least 800,000 displaced in Lebanon, “a country that already hosts a large number of refugees” from other countries.
The foreign minister also called it “unacceptable” that “innocent civilians” in Israel, Palestine, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, The United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain have also been killed and injured. “Civilians must be protected in times of war,” Eide stated, calling it “particularly grave when humanitarian workers, health personnel and others on the front line of assistance become targets of military attacks.”
The sheer damage caused by all the bombing and drone attacks is also a “great cause of concern” for Eide and the Norwegian government, which is already finanancing billions of kroner worth of defense, reconstruction projects and humanitarian aid in Ukraine after four years of attacks ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin. “What war destroys in an instant may take generations to rebuild,” Eide warned.
There was no mention in Eide’s statement, meanwhile, of what newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN) has reported as Norwegian “freelance diplomacy” that’s been going on to get Iran and the US to the bargaining table. DN reported that both Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Andreas Kravik, a state secretary in the foreign ministry, have had recent contact with the Iranians.
Henrik Thune, an experienced Norwegian diplomat, told DN that he had contact with Iran’s deputy foreign minister just over a week ago. Norwegian authorities had reportedly invited both Iranian and American officials to negotiations two years ago, during the Biden administration. The plan then was to revive the collapsed nuclear agreement between the US and Iran.
Another attempt to set up a meeting between the US and Iran in Oslo was reportedly made last summer. Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi was visiting Norway and prepared to meet US President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, but that didn’t happen: According to DN, plans for the meeting were dashed when the US bombed three Iranian nuclear outlets, and Witkoff never came to Oslo.
Foreign Minister Eide’s frustration comes as the war in Ukraine also continues to require massive amounts of aid and funding to repair power plants, buildings and other critical infrastructure. Norway is a major donor and Eide told newspaper Dagsavisen last weekend that he fears the new war in the Middle East will also “become a problem for Ukraine,” not least because of how its taking attention away from Ukraine.
There’s still broad support across party lines in Norway and within the general population to continue funding for Ukraine. The Norwegian Parliament and government have provided Ukraine with the equivalent of around NOK 170 billion and have opted for gifting the money and equipment instead of guaranteeing a loan from the EU. More money will be needed after constant bombing by Russia, and newspaper DN editorialized this week how “it’s more important than ever to support Ukraine, since we can’t rely on the US any longer.”
Norway also plays a key role in Europe’s so-called “Coalition of the Willing,” which is dedicated to support Ukraine, and on its own as a financier of Ukraine’s defense. Projects include more ground-to-air defense systems, purchases of US Patriot missiles and other means of “hitting Russia harder,” reported newspaper Aftenposten. A new generation of high-tech talent in Ukraine is, according to Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, “thinking in an entirely new way … and making very strategic decisions.” One plan calls for killing or wounding 55,000 Russians month with new missiles of their own design.
Despite the brutality of it all, Støre left Ukraine after a visit late last month more optimistic than when he’d arrived, but that was before the US got involved in a new war against Iran. That can be an advantage for Putin, who seems to fear peace and can benefit from the US being distracted both militarily and financially helping Israel in its bombings of Iran and Lebanon.