New Palestinian Government

‘Norway, like the US and the EU, considers the new Palestinian Government formed by President Abbas to be an important step towards reuniting the Gaza Strip and the West Bank,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende.   

‘Norway will continue the close cooperation we have maintained with the Palestinians ever since the Oslo Accords, in order to achieve the goal of a two-state solution. President Abbas’s assurances that the new Government recognises the state of Israel, stands by all previous agreements, and renounces violence as a political tool are of crucial importance for Norway’s position. These assurances are an essential basis for our cooperation with the new Palestinian Government,’ said Mr Brende.

‘When I met President Abbas last week, we discussed both new opportunities and major challenges for the new Government. I stressed that international funding must be continued, but that it must not go to Hamas. There is no question of the Norwegian Government establishing relations at political level with Hamas,’ said Mr Brende.