How Norway's government came under pressure from its neighbours and opposition for insufficient aid to Ukraine
Among the Western countries supporting Ukraine during the war, the so-called Nordic countries, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland, hold a special position. Their support has a significant impact and seems substantial.
However, there are questions about the scale of their "Nordic aid" to Ukraine even within these countries.
In particular, the level of assistance to Ukraine has sparked debates in Norway, with accusations aimed at the Norwegian government.
Read more to understand how justified these criticism is and the nature of the support of Ukraine by Norway and other countries in the region in the article by Iryna Kutielieva and Sergiy Sydorenko from European Pravda - Ukraine’s ally that benefited from war: Why Norway backs Ukraine’s armed forces a lot, but not enough.
Public debates took place among officials from the four Nordic countries, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland, for the first time in history.
The key topic of discussion was Russia's war against Ukraine.
When asked why wealthy Norway provides the least assistance to Ukraine among the "Nordic Four," Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide responded, "If we were standing here a year ago, Norway would have been in first place. Now Denmark is in the lead." He congratulated his Danish counterpart, Lars Løkke Rasmussen, on this achievement.
Indeed, in 2023, the Kiel Institute (their data were referenced during the debates) ranked Norway in first place, but even back then, this did not reflect the actual volume of aid provided. The study included long-term commitments, including humanitarian aid through the Nansen Support Programme for Ukraine.
While Norway continued to provide aid under the Nansen programme, other countries increased both the volume of aid and future commitments.
Over time, Norway's drop in the ranking of Ukraine supporters became more apparent, and the Norwegian opposition began raising this issue more forcefully.
The main criticism from the opposition is that, thanks to windfall profits from oil and gas due to the war, Norway has the financial resources but simply does not want to provide more aid to Ukraine.
Government officials have expressed a willingness to increase spending on aid to Ukraine, but there have been no real changes so far.
What makes this situation particularly surprising is how passive Ukraine is. Kyiv has been unable to appoint an ambassador to Norway for two years. Moreover, there is also no military attaché in Oslo.
Although Norway has the capacity to significantly increase its aid, its current contribution to supporting Ukraine is still substantial.
Even if the Norwegian government agrees to increase its aid to Ukraine, we should not expect a significant increase in military supplies.
Norway shares a land border with Russia and is also adjacent to it in the Arctic, meaning it has to spend resources on strengthening its own defence.
That said, arms deliveries are not the only, or perhaps even the main, expectation Ukraine has from Norway. The Norwegian government could primarily help by financing supplies for the Ukrainian Armed Forces and helping cover part of Ukraine’s budget deficit.
Currently, the undisputed leader in supporting Ukraine and its armed forces among the Nordic countries is Denmark, which has allocated the highest share of its GDP – 1.8%. This is significantly higher than the levels of aid provided by major donors such as the United States and Germany.
Denmark has also shown courage in making bold, groundbreaking decisions.
In conclusion, all Nordic countries remain united in their support for Ukraine.
The fact that there is now an active debate in Norway about the level of aid is a positive sign, especially given the uncertainty around US support amid the potential return of Donald Trump to power.
However, for Norway to increase its efforts, Ukraine must also show more attention and engagement with this neighbour.