Is Norway’s role as a mediator in the Middle East an advantage for us? Or does the line of dialogue lead to Norway not taking a proper position in war and conflict?
That was the topic in Tuesday’s edition of “The Debate”, where Sylvi Listhaug, Ingrid Fiskaa and Espen Barth Eide took part.
The latter has received massive criticism in the debate about the Gaza war.
– Must put pressure on Israel
– It is a good illustration that it is difficult to get everyone ready. But I firmly believe that it is best to talk to all parties. It is not the case that the world has too much diplomacy, and if we can contribute, then we should do so, said Barth Eide initially.
For its part, Fiskaa was clear that Norway must first and foremost put additional pressure on Israel, so that the war crimes come to a swift end.
– SV is not asking for Norway to break ties with Israel. On the contrary, we believe that Norway should talk to everyone, and those with whom we deeply disagree, including Israel.
– But it is unlikely that Israel will talk to us, if you get approval for everything?, Solvang followed up.
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– It may well happen. We do not know that, but it is also the case that we cannot allow an extreme right-wing and increasingly authoritarian government in Israel to dictate what Norwegian policy should be. We must do what we believe is right, and so that we can function to put pressure on Israel so that they stop with war crimes, mass slaughter and what could be genocide.
Barth Eide countered with three concrete goals for the work they are doing in Gaza, and showed support from several of our allies.
– We have three goals for the work when it comes to Israel and Palestine. There is an end to the violence, more humanitarian aid, and a two-state solution where we finally get a Palestinian state in place. I believe, for example, that contributing to the creation of a Palestinian state is more important than a full boycott of Israel. Norway could live with it, but Palestinians at the highest level ask us not to do it.
– Cozy chats with regimes
Fiskaa, for its part, highlighted the proposal they have brought to the Storting, which is to freeze money and assets that are responsible for the war crimes now seen in Gaza.
– We want sanctions against those in power in Israel who are responsible for the war crimes we are now seeing.
Listhaug pointed to the fact that Norway “sits and watches” as terrorists shoot at Norwegian ships, and that there are presumably more people reacting to this paradox.
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Solvang wondered if she thought it was wrong to talk to the Iranian clergy if it could lead to peace:
– There is nothing to indicate that it will bring peace. Iran is an actor in this region that ensures that several terrorist organizations receive weapons and resources to send rockets into Israel. This applies to Hezbollah and Hamas. We have the Houthis firing at civilian ships. There, Norway has a large merchant fleet that we should be proud of. But rather than Norway standing with our allies who have come together to stop them, Norway sits and talks with these terrorists who are shooting at Norwegian ships. I would like to think that the merchant fleet and those who work on these boats think this is strange, said Listhaug.
And added:
– It doesn’t look like this contact is yielding any results. The same applies to the clergy in Iran. They have ruled since 1979, and they oppress the population in the worst way. There are many Iranians who have fled here from this regime. What they sit and watch is that the country they have fled to is among the foremost to sit and chat with this regime. The FRP believes this is wrong.
– Nothing came of the Taliban visit
Bart Eide immediately denied that Norway “coddles” with regimes or terrorist organisations, and that our allies support the diplomatic talks Norway is conducting.
– We have never had a cozy chat with Iran, Hamas or Hezbollah. We are very clear about what we think about what they do. We are actually participating in a military operation to protect the ships in the Red Sea, but it is also true that we are in contact with Iran and the Houthis about this, with the warm support of those closest to us. We have confidence in several camps.
– Has it led to anything?
– In any case, it is the case that the escalation that many have feared has not come. It could have been much worse in the Middle East.
Listhaug then highlighted the controversial Taliban visit to Oslo, which she herself believes only led to the Taliban being given an opportunity to legitimize themselves.
– People have a fiercely pompous belief that Norway makes big differences, which we do not. We can only look at the Taliban visit a little while ago on which we spent several millions, that visit was used by the Taliban to legitimize their own terrorist organization. Nothing came of that visit. What we saw was that the women in Afghanistan did not get better afterwards, but quite the opposite.
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Have addressed the Martine case several times
Barth Eide immediately pointed out that the Taliban also visited Norway in 2015, when the FRP was in government and Sylvi was a minister.
– It is not because we support what they are doing, but we cannot give up on the Afghan people. Not having dialogue is a bad path, said the foreign minister.
Fiskaa believes that the problem is not that Norway is not doing anything, but that we are not doing enough:
– The problem is that the diplomatic role Norway claims, it has not led to an improvement in the situation for Palestinians, but quite the opposite. It is not that Norway is not doing anything, but we must do more.
Solvang could then tell Barth Eide that just before the broadcast he received an email from Odd Petter Magnussen, father of Martine Vik Magnussen..
He must have been told in every detail that Norway does not relate to a militia like the Houthis, but has now been told that there have been meetings between the parties, but that the Martine case was not discussed.
– We have brought up the Martine case many times. The last time I was foreign minister, I brought it up with Yemen, but it is a large and complex matter, which is primarily an investigation in England. However, we have supported during this.
