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<TITLE>Norwegian Defense Minister Dag Jostein Fjaervoll's Speech to 1998 NATO Workshop, Vienna, Austria</TITLE>
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<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="6" FACE="Palatino">Norwegian
Views on Security, the New NATO, and Enlargement </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="4" FACE="Palatino">Minister
of Defense Dag Jostein Fjaervoll<A HREF="0_FN0.htm"><SUP></SUP></A></FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino"><B>NORWAY’S
VIEW OF THE NEW NATO AND ENLARGEMENT</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">The end of
the Cold War greatly enhanced Europe’s—and therefore Norway’s—security,
opening the way for greater dialogue and more cooperative security
structures. While some degree of uncertainty still remains, in this
improved climate we do feel more secure. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">However,
with the post-Cold War changes, our Alliance has also changed, performing
new roles and handling new responsibilities. More often than not,
the new missions are transcending NATO’s perceived roles and
responsibilities as the Alliance undertakes crisis management, WEU
operational support, and cooperation with new Partner countries, to name
just a few. Like the post-Cold War climate, Norway also welcomes
this change. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">But for
small countries, such as Norway, it will be increasingly difficult to find
the resources necessary to cope with all aspects of NATO cooperation
equally. To make ends meet, NATO will at some point be forced to
give thought to priorities. To Norway, NATO serves as the most
important arena for security consultations. Hence, it is imperative
that NATO retain its capabilities, both for collective defense and for
collaboration on a broad range of security issues. But it will be
one of many challenges for small countries to make sure their voice is
heard, and to take part on an equal footing in the decision-making
process. It will be key for NATO, therefore, to keep the
decision-making process flexible and open. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">I am pleased
to say that Norway was the third country in the Alliance to formally
ratify the accession of Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic to NATO.
The support in our parliament was overwhelming. The leaders of
the major political parties emphasized that this enlargement is only a
first step, and that other applicants for membership will be invited when
they fulfill the requirements, when NATO is prepared to further enlarge,
and when such a step is likely to further enhance European security and
stability. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">Norway is
emphatic that the door to further enlargement remain open. Nevertheless,
neither we nor NATO as a whole has made any decision regarding timing.
In our view, it is premature to enter into any discussion concerning
the next round of enlargement. Yet we fully understand applicant
nations’ aspirations for membership. The Alliance always has
been—and will continue to be—open to those who are willing and
able to share the responsibilities of membership. </FONT> </P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino"><B>PEACE-SUPPORT
OPERATIONS AND OSCE COOPERATION</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">The
Norwegian government expects peace-support operations to be of great
importance to NATO in the future. Apart from their immediate crisis
management objectives, such operations give our forces training within the
Alliance or PFP framework and reinforce the legitimacy of the defense
cause. Additionally, such international operations continue the
effort of working to address the different types of conflict that are
appearing in the new international environment. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">Norway
believes NATO and PFP to be the best tools available for the demanding
peace-support operations we will face in the future. Article 5 still
constitutes NATO’s most important dimension, but the non-Article 5
operations have already proven rewarding. It is imperative,
nevertheless, that we maintain the member/non-member distinction in this
new area of PFP cooperation. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">Norway also
actively supports the efforts aimed at strengthening OSCE’s role in
European crisis management and crisis prevention. In 1999 Norway
will assume the OSCE’s chairmanship. One of the Norwegian
government’s main objectives will be to further strengthen the OSCE’s
executive functions, especially the organization’s ability to
intervene at the early stages of a crisis. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">In terms of
ambitions, the OSCE has raised its sights considerably. One of the
new areas it has entered into is conflict prevention. In the event
of a conflict within or between OSCE member-states, the organization, if
called upon, must be able to draw upon the resources, expertise, and
experience of others, not the least of which is NATO. The initiation
of talks between NATO and the OSCE in 1998 has been of significance for
both groups, in particular in the areas of information sharing, briefings,
consultations, and cooperation on the ground. The OSCE’s role
in crisis management should and will be further examined. However,
in my view, the OSCE should not attempt to duplicate NATO’s military
capacity for conducting peace operations. Instead, it should take on
a greater and more prominent role as a mandating regional security
instrument acting under Chapter VIII of the U.N. Charter. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">A critical
component of the OSCE, which is also found in other European security
institutions, is its potential to carry out close and informal
collaboration without the traditional competitive tendencies overtaking
its agenda. If we remember, when we deal with different security
structures, that different organizations serve different purposes, we
decrease the likelihood of duplication as well as the potential for
rivalry. </FONT> </P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino"><B>CHANGES
IN AND CONTINUING GOALS OF THE NORWEGIAN ARMED FORCES</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">In February
1998, the Norwegian government presented a White Paper to parliament that
spelled out the guidelines for and the activities of the armed forces for
the next four years. These guidelines included the government’s
objective of retaining the capacity to defend a part of the country
against invasion for the limited period of time until Allied
reinforcements arrive. It also stated that our armed forces should
seek to be capable of defending Norwegian territory against limited
attacks, and to pursue other tasks such as crisis management and
maintaining national sovereignty. Additionally, the government
stated that there will be increased emphasis on participation in NATO
Reaction Forces and in international peace-support operations. The
principles of our total defense concept and of universal conscription will
be maintained. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">In recent
years it has been increasingly difficult to attract NATO attention to the
northern part of Europe in general and, hence, to specific Norwegian
concerns. But while most NATO countries have reduced their defense
spending, Norway has so far been able to keep up the level of its defense
budget. There is no scope for reductions in Norwegian defense
spending. The government plans to maintain today’s budget level
in real terms during the next two years and to show modest growth in two
to four years. Priority will be given to the modernization of
military equipment and to training and exercises, in particular training
and exercises with Allied forces in Norway. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">One of the
most critical aspects of the White Paper is its emphasis on enhanced
mobility and flexibility and the implementation of a force structure that
can handle all types of tasks. At the end of the day, a credible
territorial defense is a necessary condition for properly managing all the
other tasks we must be prepared to handle. However, to make
territorial defense a sufficient condition for addressing all the
additional tasks requires adaptation, in particular in the areas of
flexibility and mobility. </FONT> </P>
<P ALIGN="CENTER"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino"><B>NORWAY’S
PRESENT SECURITY POLICY</B> </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">Between the
new and the old, and between the international and the domestic, we find
the very essence of Norway’s current security policy. It is a
policy that seeks to prepare the ground for the 21st century, and
acknowledges the relevance of international responsibilities for
challenges at home. Norwegian servicemen have become increasingly
aware that our participation internationally, within NATO as well as
within the U.N., has significant bearing on how our forces adapt to tasks
at home. </FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="000000" SIZE="3" FACE="Palatino">For several
decades, when Super-Power tension, suspicion, and distrust prevailed,
Norway was largely an importer of security. Today, with the shift in
the security climate, we also see ourselves as an exporter of security.
As the world has changed, we have changed. We believe in
institutional frameworks as vehicles of commitment. And we envision
a Europe that will emphasize dialogue rather than discord, cooperation
rather than confrontation. Norway has benefited from mutual
agreements in the past, and so our goal is to have as many states as
possible harvest the bounty of the work of international institutions.</FONT></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><A HREF="fjaervoll98.htm">Go to Top of Page</A></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><A HREF="workshop98.htm">Return to Vienna '98</A></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT"><A HREF="../index.html">Return to Home Page</A></P>
<P ALIGN="LEFT">Copyright © 1998 Center for Strategic Decision
Research</P>
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