Norway and the European Union

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Norway European Union
Norway and the EU in Europe
  • European Union
  • Norway
  • The Kingdom of Norway is not a member of the European Union . Norwegian citizens entitled to vote rejected membership of the European Community in 1972 and EU membership in 1994 in referendums. Nevertheless, Norway is very closely linked to the EU not only because of its geographical location, but also through the European Economic Area (EEA), in which it participates as a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), and its participation in the Schengen area .

    Attempts to join the EU

    Norway applied for membership in the European Union four times (1962, 1967, 1970 and 1992). When France vetoed membership of the United Kingdom in 1962 and 1967 , which had applied for membership at the same time as Norway, the Norwegian application for membership was not pursued either.

    The Norwegian voters then narrowly refused their country's accession to the EU in 1972 and 1994 by referendum, which is why the country's government was always forced to withdraw the application at the last minute (when the accession treaty had already been fully negotiated).

    The Norwegian coalition, which had ruled since October 2005, had undertaken not to discuss Norway's accession to the EU. The issue of the European Union hardly played a role in the Norwegian parliamentary elections in September 2009. The Norwegian political landscape is divided on the question of EU membership. The clearest supporter of membership is the conservative Høyre party . The Social Democratic Labor Party is divided on the question of EU accession. The parties Sosialistisk Venstrepartiet and Senterpartiet are strictly against joining.

    Participation in European agreements

    European Economic Area

    Since January 1, 1994, Norway, together with Iceland and Liechtenstein, has been the third country most fully integrated into the EU structures through the European Economic Area (EEA) . Norway participates in the European single market through the EEA . Norway, on the other hand, is obliged to adopt the acquis communautaire in this area and is therefore also known as fax democracy , which receives its laws by fax from Brussels. However, Norway cannot participate in EU legislation. Conversely, Norway helps finance the EU.

    Agriculture and fisheries are generally excluded from the EEA. There are bilateral agreements between the EU and Norway on the gradual liberalization of the agricultural sector.

    Cohesion contribution

    In return for its participation in the European single market, Norway makes an essential contribution to cohesion in the EU. To this end, two financial mechanisms have been set up: the EEA financial mechanism (donor countries: Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein) and, in addition, a Norwegian financial mechanism. For the period 2009-2014, the EEA and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms provide for payments totaling 1.8 billion euros. This corresponds to an increase of 22% compared to the previous five-year cycle. Norway bears 97% of this. The corresponding agreement was signed at the end of July 2010. The recipient countries are the countries that joined the EU in 2004 and 2007, as well as (with restrictions) Portugal , Greece and Spain .

    Report on the review of the EEA system

    In January 2010, the Norwegian government set up an independent committee one, of a comprehensive review (by the end of 2011 review should make) to the EEA system and the cooperation between the EU and Norway. The aim was to create a solid basis for an informed discussion about Norway's future cooperation with the EU. The committee consisted of twelve personalities from science and business. The results were published in January 2012. According to the report, Norway has significantly more advantages than disadvantages of working with the EU. So far, 75 percent of the EU directives have been adopted and more than 6000 European laws have been implemented in national law. Since joining the EEA, the Norwegian economy has grown by 60 percent and the employment rate has increased by 25 percent. The unemployment rate fell and purchasing power increased significantly. The economy benefited in particular from the export of oil and gas as well as fish and seafood to the EU countries. The Norwegian government is committed to membership in the EEA on the basis of a white paper dated October 12, 2014.

    Schengen Agreement

    Norway has been a member of the Schengen area since 2001 , within which internal border controls have been abolished. The country was previously a member of the Nordic Passport Union with open borders within the Nordic countries .

    The Scandinavian state also participates in Dublin cooperation as well as in numerous EU programs and EU agencies .

    Relations from the EU perspective

    The Council of the European Union last adopted conclusions on Norway at the level of foreign ministers on December 8, 2008. It emphasizes the good cooperation on environmental and energy issues as well as in the common foreign and security policy (CFSP). The EU wants to deepen cooperation with Norway on Arctic policy. The Foreign Ministers recognized Norway's contribution to cohesion policy within the EU. Due to the rejection of membership in the European Union, despite the strong ties to it, Norway is described by many as the “most active outsider” ( Guido Westerwelle :).

    literature

    • Claes, Dag Harald: Norway. in: Weidenfeld, Werner (ed.): The world of states in Europe. Bonn 2006.
    • Salmhofer, Andreas: The European policy of Norway. Between irrelevance and integration. Saarbrücken 2008.
    • Steppacher, Burkard: The EFTA states, the EEA and Switzerland, in: Weidenfeld, Werner / Wessels, Wolfgang (Ed.): Yearbook of European Integration. Baden-Baden 2015, pp. 315-320.

    Web links

    Individual evidence

    1. Norway and Switzerland as model cases for differentiated integration? , Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb), October 15, 2007
    2. The North and the Future of the European Union , Norway, "the official website in Germany", October 15, 2007
    3. Nina Berglund: EU agreements unlikely to waver. In: Views and News from Norway. January 18, 2012, accessed June 24, 2012 .
    4. http://www.consilium.europa.eu/uedocs/cms_data/docs/pressdata/EN/foraff/111814.pdf
    5. Speech by Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle at the Conference of Ambassadors of the Kingdom of Norway on August 24, 2012 in Oslo. Federal Foreign Office , accessed on December 5, 2013 .