Progress Party Leader Siv Jensen: "We want to Cooperate

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TAGS: PGOV PREL NO
SUBJECT: Progress Party Leader Siv Jensen: "We want to Cooperate
with all Center-Right Parties and be in the Next Government"


1. Pol/Econ Counselor and POL LES attended on September 9 a
pre-election breakfast speaker series hosted by the independent
right-leaning think tank Civita. The organization invited various
party leaders to speak solo for 90 minutes to an invited audience in
the weeks leading up to Norway's national election on Monday.
Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet or FrP) leader Siv Jensen was the
featured speaker. Some 150 people, including journalists and party
activists from across the political spectrum attended.


2. Below are a few informal highlights from Jensen's 60 minutes of
prepared remarks and 30 minutes of Q and A. Septel describes post's
updated assessment of likely election outcomes as the campaign drama
heats up in the final few days.

(a) Jensen focused almost entirely on domestic issues, mainly:
increasing free market reforms that would increase competition and
consumer choice and lead to better service in the public health,
elderly care, and education sectors.

(b) Interestingly, she did not mention foreign policy or defense in
her first 60 minutes of prepared remarks (other than energy and
international aid and trade as below). She did field several
questions on those subjects.

(c) On energy, Jensen said Norway ought to continue to focus on what
it does best, which is to work for the most environmentally-friendly
possible type of oil and gas production. She said Norway ought to
be open to the idea of exploring for oil and gas in the currently
protected Lofoten and Vesteralen areas and elsewhere in the north,
since such exploration could lead to "new industrial possibilities
(i.e., in the petrochemical sector) beyond Norway just exporting the
raw material." Besides, she added, with the situation between
Russia and its neighbors, Norway ought to realize that additional
energy supplies are needed in the region. This should include more
oil and gas resources, but it should also include development of
alternative energy sources. The two ideas are not mutually
exclusive, she said.

(d) On international development assistance, she emphasized that
"effective international free trade is better than aid alone," which
she said has been generous under the current government but not
effective in eradicating or reducing poverty. Norway ought instead
to work for reducing trade barriers with, and buying more
commodities from, developing countries.

(e) In the question and answer period, some audience members from
the Conservative Party (Hoyre),asked why Jensen was not more out
front on pushing for Norwegian EU membership in light of all the
reasons they see for doing so. She said succinctly, "We are not
there yet." She added, we are a European country dependent on
significant trade with the EU and have agreements in place, like the
EEA agreement, to cover our needs on that.

(f) Someone asked if she would consider appointing a minister-level
position for Europe or EU affairs. Jensen responded that it was
more likely she would want appropriate ministries to deal with
issues by subject than by region. "I would not want to emphasize
our trade with Europe over our trade with the U.S., for example."

(g) Center right Liberal Party (Venstre) politician Abed Raja
(currently an Embassy Oslo IV nominee) made pointed comments about
why he cannot stomach a party platform which is based on what he
characterized as "anti-immigrant" fear mongering, deporting asylum
seekers to Africa while they await results of their petitions, and
being against foreign workers which are an important part of
Norway's oil industry. Jensen said "I am not going to respond, as I
plan to cooperate with Venstre. I prefer to focus our limited
remaining campaign time on why a non-socialist coalition is better
than the current Red-Green coalition." The context is that while
FrP and Hoyre would cooperate with each other and with any of the
other two non-socialist parties, i.e., Venstre (Liberals) and KrF
(Christian Democrats),Venstre leader Lars Sponheim has repeatedly
said Venstre will NOT cooperate with or join a government that FrP
is in.

(h) At the end, a last questioner wondered why Siv Jensen had not
yet mentioned defense and asked for her plans on the subject. To
which Jensen responded: The Norwegian military has been quite
reduced, so much so that we are largely limited to contributing to
international operations (implying, that is, that there are
insufficient funds for robust national defense). She said she would
focus more on getting more funds for the Home Guard (akin to the
U.S. National Guard). On the international front, she said, Norway
needs to stand strong and steady with our international cooperation.
"The situation in Afghanistan is not something one solves
immediately; it needs a longer term commitment." Finally, she said,
"I think there is generally often a lack of coordination on the
military and civilian AND humanitarian fronts and Norway could do
better.


3. On the subject of where the race stands with Monday's vote

approaching, Jensen said: Why is the media focusing on three
parties (H, KrF, and Venstre) versus one - FrP? "It is more
important to focus on why we should have a non-socialist (that is,
center-right) majority in government. FrP comprises 50 percent of
the non-socialist votes nationwide, and we ought to be IN the
government, cooperating with other parties." She said all four
center right opposition parties ought to be prepared to make
compromises in order to bring about a change in government from the
current Red-Green left leaning coalition. "FrP should not be the
ones to give up our platform/principles; there should be give and
take (among us four)." She repeated often, FrP should be inside a
non-socialist government, not in the opposition. She closed on this
topic by saying, "It is not over. I believe there will be a
government change on Monday - toward a strong, non-socialist
government."