Political dialogue
Diplomatic relations between the Republic of Belarus and the Kingdom of Norway were established on February 4, 1992.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Vladimir Senko, visited Norway in October 1996.
The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Norway to Ukraine, Ole Terje Horpestad, is accredited concurrently to the Republic of Belarus and on May 2, 2017, presented his credentials to the Head of the Belarusian state.
On November 29, 2018, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the Kingdom of Norway (with the residence in Stockholm), Dmitry Mironchik, presented his Letters of Credence to the King of Norway, Harald V.
In February 2016 in the margins of Munich Security Conference the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, Vladimir Makei, met the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Børge Brende.
Since January 2016 the practice of holding bilateral Consultations between the MFAs of Belarus and Norway has been resumed. The Consultations took place in Minsk at the level of heads of departments.
In April 2017 consultations at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers took place in Oslo (from the Belarusian Side – Oleg Kravchenko, from the Norwegian Side – Marit Berger Rosland).
On December 5, 2017, the protocol on the completion of bilateral negotiations on market access for goods and services between Belarus and Norway was signed in Geneva in the framework of our country accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The end of 2018 is remarkable for further activization of the Belarusian-Norwegian dialogue. On December 6-7, following the presentation of the credentials and the series of meetings held by the Ambassador Dmitry Mironchik in Oslo, the Head of the MFA of Belarus, Vladimir Makei, exchanged views on certain issues of bilateral agenda with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Ine Eriksen Søreide, at the meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council in Milan.
On December 11, 2018, Minsk hosted next round of the Consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Belarus and Norway.
The Belarusian delegation at the meeting was headed by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Oleg Kravchenko, the Norwegian delegation was led by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Audun Halvorsen.
During the consultations, the whole set of issues of the bilateral agenda, interaction in the framework of international organizations, including the UN, were discussed. The sides also considered the issues on the regional agenda, prospects for cooperation to strengthen nuclear safety.
The Norwegian delegation was received by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Vladimir Makei.
On August 25-27, 2019, at the invitation of the President of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) and member of the Storting, Jorodd Asphjell, the Chairman of the International Affairs Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus, Valery Voronetsky, and the Ambassador of Belarus to Sweden and Norway, Dmitry Mironchik, took part in the 28th conference of the BSPC in Oslo.
The Minister of Transport and Communications of Belarus, Aleksei Avramenko, visited Oslo in December 2019 and met with the Minister of Transport and Communications of Norway, Jon Georg Dale.
On January 28, 2020, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Oleg Kravchenko, visited Norway and took part in political consultations between the Belarusian Foreign Ministry and the Norwegian Foreign Ministry.
In April 2020 upon the initiative of the Norwegian Side, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Vladimir Makei, had a telephone conversation with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Ine Eriksen Søreide. During the conversation, the parties discussed a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, as well as interaction in international organizations, primarily in the UN. The Ministers emphasized the importance of joint efforts in combating the pandemic.
In June and August 2020, upon the initiative of the Norwegian Side, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Oleg Kravchenko, had a telephone conversation with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway, Audun Halvorsen. During the conversation, a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, as well as the situation in Belarus after the presidential elections were discussed.
In its relations with Belarus, Norway, which is not a member of the EU, follows the European Union's common political line and declares that it shares similar goals with Brussels. After the presidential elections in Belarus in 2020, Norway joined the EU sanctions against Belarus.
As a result of the crisis in relations with Western countries, the number of Belarusian-Norwegian contacts at all levels has decreased, in some areas they have been completely suspended. The Belarusian Side remains committed to the development of constructive relations with all international partners, including Norway, and calls to abandon the confrontational policy against the interests of the people of Belarus.
