'Not Valid for Oil': The Petroleum Dilemma in Norwegian Foreign Policy

Abstract

Bergesen, H. O. 'Not Valid for Oil': The Petroleum Dilemma in Norwegian Foreign Policy. Cooperation and Conflict, XVII, 1982, 105-116.

In this article traditional Norwegian foreign policy ideals are compared with the problems Norway is facing as an oil-exporting country. It is the basic thesis of the article that in the latter capacity the country is confronted with a global situation very different from the international environment it is familiar with and from the ideals on which its foreign policy is based. This is most clearly seen with regard to the vision of a future international legal order including close political cooperation across the North-South cleavage — the globalization of the Scandinavian model. This ideal is a world apart from the insecure, unstable oil system with its high economic stakes, political risks, and high tension. The article explores how the Norwegian foreign policy leadership has reacted to this discrepancy. The analysis shows that it is hard to discern any overall, dominating trend in the formulation of Norwegian foreign oil policy. We seem to be confronted with, not a coherent government position, but several separate policies that coexist in spite of their inconsistency.