Translated from Norwegian (as delivered)

Good afternoon, and thank you for coming.

I would like to give a few introductory remarks about a matter that I think many of you are concerned about – the tariffs announced by the US – and to put it into context.

Yesterday, the US President announced that Norway is one of the countries that may see increased US tariffs, referring to the presence of representatives from Norway and other countries in Greenland, which he considers to be unacceptable and even a threat to world peace, to refer to his tweet.

I would like to reiterate my statement from yesterday afternoon: I consider such threats to be unacceptable; they have no place among allies.

Norway’s position on the issue of Greenland remains clear: Greenland is a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, and Norway supports the Kingdom of Denmark’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The future of Greenland can only be decided by the people of Greenland and Denmark.

Norway also supports the talks to be held between the US and Denmark as agreed at their meeting in the White House earlier this week. These are issues that must be resolved by political and diplomatic means, especially between close allies who know each other well and whose relationship is built on trust.

I would also like to stress that there is broad consensus among NATO’s 32 member countries – including the US – on the need to enhance security in the Arctic, including in Greenland.

We are now in 2026. In 2005, the Government, in which I was serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs, identified the High North as Norway’s most important strategic priority area. I believe this wording has been used, largely unchanged, by every government since: the Stoltenberg Governments, the Solberg Governments, and my current Government.

Norway has worked hard to ensure that NATO takes responsibility for all of NATO’s territory, including the High North and the Arctic. Two decades ago, these were uncharted waters. We have since gained more knowledge of the issues concerned. International law and the Law of the Sea apply in the Arctic, and NATO has gradually assumed more responsibility.

Over the past year, the Arctic states have developed a common position within NATO on NATO’s presence in the Arctic. This position was consulted upon, has been well received, and forms the basis for NATO’s plans to enhance security in the Arctic.

Defence personnel from various countries have recently been in Greenland. This includes two staff officers from the Norwegian Joint Headquarters, who joined colleagues from other countries to look at how to plan for future NATO exercises in Greenland. I should stress that the US and other NATO Allies had been closely consulted on the purposes of the visit.

Again, this represents a broader picture, which I believe reflects how NATO, as an alliance for collective security, is responsible for all of NATO’s territory. At the end of the first decade of this century, a project was launched to ‘bring NATO home’ following a period of extensive engagement far away from the Alliance’s core areas. Norway has been at the forefront of this initiative, and I believe it has delivered results.

So, this is the background.

It is against this backdrop that the US President – with the justification he gave in his tweet yesterday – announced that the US would be imposing tariffs from 1 February with an increase from 1 June on the group of countries that have had representatives in Greenland. I have made our views on the matter very clear.

I would also like to say to the Norwegian business sector, which is now experiencing uncertainty, that we were in contact with the employer and employee organisations after yesterday’s announcement. The Minister of Trade and Industry has spoken to the leaders of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise (NHO) and the Federation of Norwegian Industries, and we understand that the announced tariff increases on exports to the US – which, and I must stress this, are not yet in force – is causing uncertainty.

To reiterate, trade barriers are bad news for an open economy such as Norway’s and for Norwegian exports to the US. We will do our utmost to safeguard Norwegian interests in the current situation.

I would also like to add that the spokespersons for the business sector and the social partners have been unequivocal in their feedback to us that Norway cannot allow itself to be pressured into changing its fundamental position on Greenland’s sovereignty. I share their view. Norway’s position is – and must be – that threats to impose tariffs are not appropriate in this matter.

In closing, I would like to say that the relevant members of the Government – that is, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Minister of Defence, the Minister of Trade and Industry and I – are in close contact with our Nordic neighbours – Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Iceland – as well as our European Allies. The Nordic and European response to the tariff announcement has been united and unanimous.

This afternoon, Denmark’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, will be arriving in Norway to meet his Norwegian counterpart Espen Barth Eide. They will also be available to take questions from the press later in the afternoon.