The Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Oslo Press Division

Norway Daily No. 77/00

Date: 18 April 2000

EU ISSUE SPLITS CENTRIST COALITION (Aftenposten)

Christian Democratic Party deputy chairman Odd Anders With feels it would be unwise of the party to make opposition to EU membership a fixed part of its party programme for the coming parliamentary term. Mr. With does not want the party to be tied to the results of the 1994 referendum. Centre Party deputy chairman Åse Grønlien Østmoe demands that the centrist parties stick together on the EU membership issue. She says that a continued coalition in the next term depends on a shared commitment to oppose EU membership. Many Liberal and Christian Democratic representatives do not think it is wise to make a commitment lasting until 2005 on this issue, but Centre Party leaders show no signs of yielding.

STUDENTS NOT INTERESTED IN LEADERSHIP ROLE (Dagsavisen)

Today’s university students do not want to be leaders, and they are not interested in providing a moral example to the rest of society, according to a recent report which examines social morals among students at the University of Oslo. Students in the Faculty of Arts are least inclined towards this sort of leadership role; theology students seem more prepared than anyone else to take this responsibility.

NORWEGIAN FOOD IS ACTUALLY CHEAP (Verdens Gang)

The average adult in Norway works 2 hours and 33 minutes for one week’s supply of food. This is 10 minutes less than last year, according to a report compiled by the Norwegian Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives (NFAC) in collaboration with the Norwegian Trade Council. The report, based on a comparative study of incomes and food prices in 14 countries, also shows that in only four countries do people have to put in less work for their daily bread than in Norway.

STRIKE LOOMING LARGER (Dagens Næringsliv)

The likelihood of a major strike starting on 3 May is quite substantial, in the view of Olav Støylen, president of the Norwegian Union of Chemical Industry Workers, one of the largest in the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO). LO leaders are doing their best to avoid a conflict. LO president Yngve Hågensen has said little so far, but he has summoned a press conference on the first Tuesday after Easter to discuss the wage settlement.

OIL EXPORTS AT RECORD LEVELS (Aftenposten)

Norway’s oil export sales are rising steadily. NOK 19.9 billion worth of crude and NOK 3 billion worth of natural gas were exported in March, according to Statistics Norway. Traditional goods exports totalled NOK 18.6 billion, but corresponding imports were up to NOK 24.3 billion. The trade surplus for March was thus NOK 17.2 billion. Crude oil exports for the first three months of the year amount to NOK 56.3 billion.

TENSION SUBSIDING ON OSLO STOCK EXCHANGE (Dagens Næringsliv)

The stock market opened on Monday with falling indexes and a storm of phone calls from nervous investors to their brokers. Anxiety dissipated rapidly, however, and the downturn halted within minutes. The all-share index and the IT index closed at 2.4 and 8.5 points respectively below their opening levels. Trading activity on the Oslo Stock Exchange was down all day as major investors bided their time.

WORTH NOTING

• Only people who are seriously mentally disturbed can count on immediate help. Others must wait two years for an appointment with a psychologist. (Aftenposten)
• The Russian Supreme Court has upheld the acquittal of Aleksandr Nikitin. The case is now closed for good, and Mr. Nikitin can put all espionage charges behind him. (NTB)
• City-dwellers and people who earn NOK 300,000 or more per year tend to prefer Jens Stoltenberg as prime minister. Rural voters and people with lower incomes would like to see Kjell Magne Bondevik return to office. Overall preference for Mr. Stoltenberg is higher, though—43.1 per cent for Mr. Stoltenberg and 37.5 per cent for Mr. Bondevik—according to Din Mening’s April poll. (Nationen)
• Commander Bjørn Krohn, the controversial leader of the frigate project, has asked to be replaced. (Aftenposten)
• Police and Public Roads Administration personnel find defects on one out of every three trucks transporting hazardous goods on Norwegian roads. Approximately 500,000 tons of motor fuel, heating oil and other types of hazardous substances are moved by road transport in Norway every year. (NTB)
• A national action plan drawn up by the Norwegian Fish Farmers’ Association aims for a reduction of least 100,000 in the number of salmon and trout escaping from aquaculture compounds this year. (Nationen)
• The Oslo Stock Exchange plunged over NOK 20 billion in the course of a few hours yesterday. This was only a microscopic fraction of the losses seen on the major stock exchanges around the world, however. (Dagsavisen)

TODAY’S COMMENT from Dagbladet

The Russian Supreme Court has upheld the acquittal of Aleksandr Nikitin, an associate of the Bellona Foundation, who was arrested in his home in February 1996 and charged with disclosing defence secrets. This court decision is good news, not only for Mr. Nikitin and the Bellona Foundation, but also for Russia itself. It is the first time the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), successor to the KGB, has lost a case in an open Russian court. In its prosecution of the case, the FSB followed its customary practice of applying secret laws as well as laws passed since Mr. Nikitin’s alleged crime was committed. But the Russian Supreme Court’s affirmation of his innocence is also an affirmation that Russia has taken a large step towards the rule of law. Chaotic and faltering though the advances may be, this judgement shows that Russia is headed in the right direction.