Stoltenberg Report presented to Nordic Foreign Ministers

Össur Skarphéðinsson, Minister for Foreign Affairs today received, on behalf of his Nordic colleagues, a report by Thorvald Stoltenberg, former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Defence of Norway, on Nordic foreign and security policy cooperation. The report was launched at an extraordinary meeting of the Nordic foreign ministers in Oslo.

The report looks towards the next 10-15 years, making recommendations regarding a closer co-operation between the five Nordic countries, including peacebuilding, air-policing and maritime monitoring, security in the High North, cyber-security, cooperation between foreign services and defence.

One of the proposals mentions increased Nordic security cooperation in the High North, including joint air-policing around Iceland. Minister Skarphéðinsson said this was an interesting proposal which would be discussed further in Iceland in the weeks and months to come.

In general the Stoltenberg-report was well received by the Nordic Ministers, who said the proposals would be developed further and discussed at the ordinary meeting of the Nordic foreign ministers in Reykjavik in spring 2009.

In June 2008, the Nordic foreign ministers commissioned Thorvald Stoltenberg to produce an independent report on how Nordic cooperation on foreign and security policy could be developed during the coming 10–15 years. Contributions from the Nordic experts were included in the report, on Iceland’s behalf from Guðmundur Alfreðsson and Kristrún Heimisdóttir.

The report can be downloaded here.