In response to Swedish Radio’s reports of illegal surcharges levied in connection with the oil-for-food programme, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to provide the following information.

Norway was a member of the UN Security Council in 2001-2002 and held the chairmanship of the Iraq Sanctions Committee during the same period. Swedish Radio has broadcast allegations that Norway and a number of other countries in the Security Council were aware of Iraq’s practice of levying illegal surcharges, and that Norway failed to raise this matter in the Sanctions Committee.

The Norwegian authorities assume that these reports were referring to illegal surcharges levied on levied on contracts for the import of humanitarian goods into Iraq under the oil-for-food programme. Norway was aware of such allegations, but there was no proof to substantiate them. The Sanctions Committee did not receive specific information from any national authorities about companies based in their country. It was therefore not possible to further investigate this matter, which would have required unanimity in the Sanctions Committee.

Following the regime change in Iraq in 2003, an extensive investigation of the oil-for-food programme, including of the allegations of illegal surcharges, was launched. The investigation report does not contain any criticism of Norway’s chairmanship of the Sanctions Committee.

During its chairmanship, Norway focused on reforming the sanctions regime in order to improve the situation of the Iraqi civilian population. It achieved considerable success in reforming the oil-for-food programme, for example by reducing the possibilities of evading the sanctions.

- There is no reason to hide that the political situation in 2001 had reached a deadlock. Due to deep divisions between the permanent members of the Security Council, there was extremely limited scope for discussing specific shortcomings. Nevertheless, we focused determinedly on promoting broad reform of the entire system, said Ambassador Ole Peter Kolby, chairman of the Sanctions Committee at the time.

- Furthermore, it is the national authorities that are responsible for investigating violations of the sanctions regime. There is no reason to believe that any of the small number of Norwegian companies that were active in Iraq during that period paid illegal surcharges to Iraq, the ambassador added.