Bondevik says Mid-East situation most serious for 20 years (NTB)

"The situation is extremely serious. I am afraid that the conflict could get completely out of control, and spread to other countries in the region," said Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik to NTB. The PM said that pressure must be brought to bear on the parties to stop the use of violence and bring about a cease-fire. Mr Bondevik said that the most important thing now is for the superpowers to get more actively involved. Responding to Socialist Left Party leader Kristin Halvorsen’s demand that Israel’s Ambassador to Norway be hauled over the coals, the PM said: "We have gone a step further. The Foreign Minister was in touch with his Israeli counterpart on Sunday, and I am also considering whether to contact the Israeli government. The issue has therefore been escalated to a higher level than merely summoning Israel’s Ambassador."

Drama as UN Security Council adopts Norwegian resolution (Dagbladet)

This weekend Norway’s presidency of the UN Security Council concluded amid high drama. For the first time in the history of the UN, the USA backed a resolution which Israel protested strongly against. The resolution demands, among other things, that Israel withdraws from Palestinian-controlled areas on the West Bank. "It was a dramatic night," said Norway’s UN Ambassador Ole Peter Kolby, who yesterday handed the presidency of the UN Security Council to Russia.

Little faith in rapid EU membership (Nationen)

Only 34.5 per cent of Norwegian voters believe the country will join the EU within the next five years. Even a majority of EU membership supporters expect Norway to still be outside the EU in 2007. Neither the pull from Eastern European expansion nor the recent upsurge in EU enthusiasm among Icelandic voters has increased the belief that Norway is on a fast track to EU membership, according to a recent opinion poll which Sentio-Norsk Statistikk has carried out on behalf of Nationen.

Different strategies – same return (Aftenposten)

The Norwegian Central Bank and the National Insurance Fund have achieved equally good levels of return on their investments over the past four years. The Government Petroleum Fund is slightly ahead with a total return on investment of around 23 per cent since 1998. The National Insurance Fund managed a 20.3 per cent return. It is not simply the proportion of the sums invested which have been placed in the stock market which separates the two state investment funds. The Government Petroleum Fund is not allowed to invest in Norway at all, while the National Insurance Fund has to invest the vast majority of its cash at home. The Government Petroleum Fund at NOK 614 billion is, moreover, almost five times larger than the National Insurance Fund.

Oil prices as budgeted (Aftenposten)

During the first quarter of the year the price of oil remained approximately at the level forecast by the Government in the national budget. However, oil prices are now at their highest level so far this year. Up to now the Government’s predictions for oil prices have been practically dead on target. The average price of Brent Blend with a delivery date set one month ahead was USD 21.28 per barrel during the first quarter. Brent Blend represents a benchmark for North Sea oil prices. The Government’s budget assumption was USD 20-21 per barrel, depending on the exchange rate. The market is afraid that the situation in the Middle East will affect oil supplies. The price of oil rose yesterday to its highest level for over six months.

No stomach for strike action (Dagbladet)

Only one in ten workers is willing to take strike action to secure higher wages if the current round of wage negotiations gives a poorer result than expected. This surprisingly low figure has emerged from a survey carried out by MMI on behalf of Dagbladet. The lack of stomach for a fight is bad news for union bosses who will embark on this year’s wage negotiations immediately after Easter.

Dørum calls for stiffer sentences in rape cases (NTB)

Justice Minister Odd Einar Dørum is calling for stiffer sentences for men who use violence against women, particularly in rape cases. The Justice Minister has told NRK that he has full respect for the independence of the judiciary, but he added that the call for stiffer sentences in certain cases has come from many different quarters.

Valla slams local government association (Dagens Næringsliv)

Gerd-Liv Valla, president of the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO), is furious with the Norwegian Association of Local Authorities (KS) – in which the Labour Party and the Socialist Left Party hold the majority – for saying it plans to ignore the plight of low-paid workers during the forthcoming wage negotiations. "We in the LO are trying to ensure our members have an income they can live on. Does the KS leadership really believe that it is no longer important to take that aspect into consideration? asked an indignant LO president. Local government wage negotiations start on Friday. It could be a tough battle.

Worth Noting

• "A declaration of war on President Arafat and the Palestinian people must be condemned by the entire international community," said Bishop Gunnar Stålsett. "If there ever were a situation in which the stationing of UN forces was justified, it must be that in the Middle East today," he said. (Klassekampen)
• When the news broke on Maundy Thursday that the merger between PGS and Veritas DGC could go ahead after all, the market value of PGS leaped USD 106 million on the New York Stock Exchange. However, the swap ratio has been changed and PGS boss Reidar Michaelsen is out of the top slot. (Dagens Næringsliv)
• Russian agricultural college students are queuing up for a job in Norway. Norwegian farmers have given them a warm welcome and the agricultural services firm, Troms landbrukstjeneste, has signed an agreement with the Arkhangelsk agricultural school to supply relief farm workers. (Nationen)
• New rules under which couples must pay the full cost of IVF treatment have led to a cut in the number of childless couples choosing in vitro fertilization. Waiting lists are now shorter. At the same time the age limit for treatment has been raised to 42. (Dagsavisen)
• Norwegian choirs and brass bands have found the key to the Government’s coffers. They call practicing ‘courses’ or ‘study circles’ and rake in millions of kroner in financial assistance – over NOK 32 million, to be precise. This was the total amount in adult education grants which was paid to Norwegian choirs and brass bands last year. (Aftenposten)

Today’s comment from Aftenposten, Verdens Gang and Dagsavisen

Old soldiers have a tendency to refight the last war, to plan and execute measures in the way experience shows they should have been planned and executed the last time. General Ariel Sharon is no exception, rather the rule which confirms that this is the way the thinking goes. The general, who is also Israel’s prime minister, has demonstrated this to the full by turning to the Israeli people, declaring that Israel is at war with the Palestinians and going all out to win that war. Sharon has resorted to the politics of the iron fist. (Aftenposten) Foreign Minister Shimon Peres has said that the Israeli offensive on the West Bank in the past few days is a war for Israel’s very existence. It has made us doubt whether it was right to award Mr Peres the Nobel Peace Prize. The Foreign Minister must understand that it is the Sharon government’s implacable policy of violence which has created the largest wave of suicide bombings ever perpetrated against Israeli targets. The best guarantee for Israel’s continued existence would be for the country to give up the occupied territories and recognize a Palestinian state within the framework of the Oslo Accords which Shimon Peres himself was a party to. (Verdens Gang) Without substantial international pressure on the Sharon government, it will not be possible to find a solution. Peace plans have been written by the score. The UN Security Council has in a short space of time twice adopted resolutions which would have led to peace – if Israel had listened to the UN. If a positive result is to be achieved, the USA will have to take the lead in a concerted international campaign of pressure on Israel. (Dagsavisen)