At his press conference in Oslo on 3 January 2005, Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik said:

On behalf of all Norwegians I want to express our sincere gratitude to the authorities and the inhabitants in the areas hit by the waves. In the hour of catastrophe and in the days since, they have offered an impressive amount of help to affected Norwegians. Not the least our thanks go to Thailand, where many Norwegian tourists were among those affected. We have received moving reports of the goodness and consideration offered to Norwegians by local inhabitants.