Angela Merkel receives Stoltenberg and Cameron for talks on the Euro, 2012. Demotix/ Goncalo Silva. All rights reserved.Britain’s influence in Europe, and even its membership of the European Union, are now the subject of robust argument in the country. There are divergent views on the best ways forward. This contribution is not intended to take part in the British debate, but is a perspective on the larger issues guided by my judgment of what serves Norway best, and what I believe will serve Europe best.
Quite possibly, Norway’s longest-standing and most consistent foreign policy tradition is not to part ways with the British. It stems from the Napoleonic wars and the famine caused by the British blockade of Denmark-Norway. This was a harsh lesson, but we have since been well served by our close ties to the UK and benefit from its influence in Europe and beyond. We believe our interests are still served by being closely aligned with Britain, and by Britain being inside the EU.
In the diary of his years as President Kennedy’s ambassador to India, eminent economist John Kenneth Galbraith mentioned a brief meeting in the White House. The president asked Galbraith to prepare a memo on what relations the United States should seek with "the sixes and the sevens" - the informal names often used at the time for the European Economic Comminity (EEC, or "Common Market") and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
