Prime Minister Solberg met Ireland’s Taoiseach Martin

‘It was a very constructive meeting,’ said Ms Solberg. ‘Both Norway and Ireland have recently been elected as members of the UN Security Council, and it was important for us to discuss upcoming topics on the Council's agenda. Our countries are among those that have the most in common on the Council, and we have much to gain from close cooperation on women, peace and security, climate change and security, and other key priority areas. 

‘We have cooperated closely for many years in the UN, especially on human rights, conflict resolution, disarmament and development aid. For the next two years we will both be members of the UN Security Council. Cooperation in this context will give us a unique opportunity to deepen the already close relations between our two countries, and a basis to further build on when our period on the Council is over.

‘There is also great potential for broader bilateral cooperation with Ireland. We share a common history, we are both small countries and we have traditionally held similar views on a number of international issues. Ireland and Norway are also partners in the EEA cooperation, and we both have ambitious goals for the green transition. There is great potential for expanding our business sector cooperation, which is already experiencing strong growth in the energy industry (particularly wind power), but also in connection with oceans, technology and research,’ said Ms Solberg.