The Workers ‘ Party of Norway won the largest number of votes in the elections, now it will form a coalition. Its head, Jonas Gar Stere, has repeatedly advocated closer contacts with Russia
Jonas Gar Stere
In the general elections in Norway, after counting 100% of the ballots, the Workers ‘ Party, which was in opposition, won, the Norwegian portal Valg reports.
26.4% of voters voted for the Workers ‘ Party, 3.8 million Norwegians voted for it in absolute terms.
The ruling Conservative Party (“Right”) lost the election and received 20.5% of the vote. The Center Party (13.6%) and the Progress Party (11.7%) also received more than 10%.
The leader of the Workers ‘ Party, Jonas Gar Stere, who previously served as Minister of Foreign Affairs, in August 2021 announced a poor level of diplomatic contacts with Russia. He said that he is critical of the reduction of contacts between Moscow and Oslo, and if elected to the post of Prime Minister of Norway, he intends to cooperate more actively with Russia.
“We need a more active policy to solve problems. <..."The neighboring and coastal regions of Russia and Norway should cooperate much better," he said at the time. According to him, Norway should promote and protect national interests in the Arctic.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Sereide accused Stere of lying. “I am surprised by the words of Jonas Gar Stere about bad political contacts between Norway and Russia, because he himself knows that this is not true,” she said at the time and noted that only this year she had already met twice with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and Oslo has more contacts with Moscow than many other states.
Now Stere will hold consultations on the formation of a government with other parties.
The Workers ‘ Party of Norway is one of the largest and oldest political forces in the country, it has repeatedly won elections and was in power both as part of a coalition and independently.
The current NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, was twice Prime Minister of Norway from the Workers ‘ Party in 2000, 2001 and 2005, 2013.
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