NORWAY AND AFRICA, A RELATIONSHIP UNDERGOING CHANGE

UNCLAS OSLO 001113 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO AF, AF/E, AND EUR/NB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS PBTS KPKO ET ER NO SUBJECT: NORWAY AND AFRICA, A RELATIONSHIP UNDERGOING CHANGE ¶1. (U) Summary. The GON has made Africa a priority, expanding activities there beyond its long-standing development presence. One concrete example is the GON,s commitment to contribute a 200 person engineering battalion to the UN mission in Darfur. A more negative example is the recent expulsion of Norwegian diplomats from Ethiopia. Reflecting this growing interest, Theresa Whelan, Department of Defense Deputy Assistant Secretary for Africa, visited Oslo on October 31 and met with Norwegian Defense officials and NGOs. Her visit reassured NGOs and GON officials regarding the "comprehensive" civilian military approach that will characterize AFRICOM and the broad USG agenda on Africa. End Summary. NGOs Pleased by Increased U.S. Interest in Africa but Warn of Dangers -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) Whelan briefed representatives from the Norwegian Red Cross, Norwegian Refugee Council, Norwegian Church Aid and leading think tank on AFRICOM. All expressed appreciation for Whelan,s visit and for her comments regarding the importance of close cooperation between the military, NGOs and humanitarian workers on the ground in Africa before a crisis. Whelan,s explanation of how AFRICOM will be set up, including its stress on the humanitarian and disaster relief efforts and the fact that a civilian from the Department of State will be the deputy commander helped to clarify the role that the U.S. military will play in Africa. The NGOs all stressed the potential positives that could stem from an increased U.S. presence and knowledge of African affairs. They also stressed the need to avoid traps such as host governments playing up the danger of terrorism to obtain U.S. support in internal struggles, as well as the danger of compromising NGO work through too close association with the military. MOD Enthusiastically Welcomes AFRICOM -------------- -- ¶3. (SBU) Whelan next met with the Deputy Minister of Defense, Espen Barth Eide, who enthusiastically welcomed her and participated in a detailed conversation after Whelan,s presentation. MOD and MFA officials also participated in the briefing. Barth Eide was quite interested in Whelan,s presentation of AFRICOM,s setup and described Norway,s focus on UN efforts and on strengthening the African Union (AU) as the only real international organization which can represent all of Africa. Whelan and Barth Eide discussed: China,s presence in Africa and shifts in Chinese behavior which may indicate a more positive Chinese role; the need for security assistance to emphasize the place of military in society, not just to build a more efficient military; the need for the UN, the EU and NATO to coordinate activities, and the role of NGOs and development organizations in African society. Barth Eide mentioned joint Nordic plans for training of African militaries and wondered if that might be an area where Norway could work with the U.S. Norway in Africa: A Mixed Bag -------------- 4.(U) Norway,s presence in Africa has a long history but has been primarily development focused. When the current government took office in 2005, one of their goals was to increase Norway,s involvement in Africa. Some of this increase has taken the form of new embassies in Africa. A new Norwegian Embassy opened in Algiers this fall and soon Norway will open in Liberia, bringing its embassies in Africa to nineteen. These increases have been funded by reductions in staffing at several European Embassies. New embassies have been matched by increased diplomatic efforts, primarily concerning Sudan and the Ethiopia/Eritrea conflict. Waiting to go to Darfur( -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The most prominent example of a non-development African focus is the commitment to provide half of an engineering battalion (in cooperation with Sweden) for a UN mission to Darfur. The Norwegian contribution would be approximately 200 personnel. After much discussion with the UN and the AU over issues such as force protection this joint battalion is ready to deploy whenever final agreement is reached with the Sudanese government. If approved, this will be Norway,s first military operation on the African continent. Norway is a member of the Sudan contact group and takes an active role in coordinating meetings as well as encouraging the various factions in Sudan to abide by the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. Kicked out of Ethiopia -------------- ¶6. (SBU) In late August the Ethiopian government kicked out six Norwegian diplomats from Addis Ababa because of "dissatisfaction" with Norway,s conduct in the Horn of Africa. Norway had been critical of the Ethiopian incursion into Somalia and has been very active in attempting to promote negotiations on the Ethiopian-Eritrean border in the region as well as in the UN. These activities may have been regarded as too meddlesome by Ethiopian authorities. Norwegians reacted in surprise to the expulsion Qtheir diplomats as this did not fit theirQn self-image aQgood guys". The GON expressed frustration with the Ethiopians, stating that this would affect a substantial bilateral aid program. Diplomatic relations were not broken and the Norwegian embassy remains open. Rain Forest Win over African Development -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Norway,s tradition of development aid to Africa is long, but is showing signs of change. Norway,s development efforts in general have been a topic of some debate in NGO and elite circles, with critics calling Norway,s aid ineffective and unmonitored while defenders stress the importance of maintaining Norwegian efforts in Africa despite some inefficiencies. However, this debate involves mostly party and NGO specialists and has not generated much public interest. ¶8. (SBU) The personal influence of the Minister of Development, Erik Solheim, is a very important factor and his recent appointment as Minister of Environment in addition to his Minister of Development role is likely the most significant reason for some shifts in Norway,s development policy. Solheim, who had been the main force behind the GON,s Africa efforts, has now, at least partially, shifted his focus to environmental issues. He was quoted recently as saying "We must think of the environment in all we do" and had shifted aid to Latin America and to projects such as rainforest preservation instead of Africa. According to some critics, Solheim's new focus on the environment may weaken the GON commitment to help the poor in Africa. Despite some changes, it appears that the GON's stress on African issues will remain central. Aid to Africa remains part of the coalition's central policy platform document and PM Stoltenberg is very interested in the UN Millenium Goals, particularly child and maternal health. ¶9. (SBU) Comment: Solheim,s personal interest and a general belief that Norway has an obligation to help those countries less fortunate drive interest in Africa. As Norwegian presence expands beQd development to military operations and active pursuit of peace nQtiatiQ, it is clear that such action may come at some cost. Norwegians were clearly surprised by the expulsion of their diplomats from Ethiopia although it was obvious to observers that greater Norwegian involvement in Africa,s conflicts would bring the risk of being seen as less than evenhanded. Similarly, if a Norwegian force is deployed in Sudan there is an inherent risk that Norwegians could suffer casualties. There has been no general public debate over the GON,s Africa commitments to date, but this could change rapidly if unfortunate events occur because of this commitment. End Comment WHITNEY