The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NorwegianBokmål: Det kongelige utenriksdepartement or Utenriksdepartementet; Nynorsk: Det kongelege utanriksdepartementet or Utanriksdepartementet; UD) is the foreign ministry of the Kingdom of Norway. It was established on June 7, 1905, the same day the Parliament of Norway (Storting) decided to dissolve the personal union with Sweden.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was established on the same day that Norway declared the dissolution of the union with Sweden: June 7, 1905. Although diplomats could not present credentials to foreign governments until the Swedish king formally renounced his right to the Norwegian throne, a number of unofficial representatives worked on the provisional government's behalf until the first Norwegian ambassador, Hjalmar Christian Hauge, sought accreditation by the United States Secretary of State Elihu Root on November 6, 1905.
The initial purposes of the newly formed Foreign Ministry were to represent Norway's interests through diplomatic channels, and to provide consular services for Norwegian shipping and commerce overseas. In 1906, the Storting decided to establish six embassies in Europe, with two more in the Americas: one in the United States and one in Argentina. 20 consular offices were also opened.
During World War I, the foreign ministry was confronted with unprecedented challenges in maintaining neutrality for Norway, in particular in order to protect its merchant fleet.
In 1922, the ministry was consolidated and reorganised to ensure fuller cooperation between the diplomatic and consular branches. The reorganization included the formation of a designated career path for diplomats that included completion of a university entrance examination and professional experience from international trade. The economic hardship of the times forced austerity measures at the ministry for the next several years.
When Norway was invaded by Nazi Germany in 1940, the government fled to the United Kingdom and reconstituted in exile in Bracknell, outside London. Kingston House in London was later used. The government moved back to Norway following the peace in 1945.
The formal name of the ministry is the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Bokmål: Det kongelige utenriksdepartement with the short form Utenriksdepartementet, and Nynorsk: Det kongelege utanriksdepartementet with the short form Utanriksdepartementet), abbreviated as UD. The ministry is also sometimes known as the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Bokmål: Det kongelige norske utenriksdepartement or Nynorsk: Det kongelege norske utanriksdepartementet). In everyday speech in Norway it is usually known under its short form, with the longer forms reserved for formal letters and documents.
State Secretaries for Foreign Affairs Henrik Thune, Eivind Vad Petersson (both Labour).
State Secretary for International Development Bjørg Sandkjær (Centre Party)
Political Advisor Eirin Kristin Kjær (Labour)
Secretariat of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
Secretariat of the Minister of International Development
Foreign Service Control Unit
Communication Unit
Legal Adviser
The operational level
The top public servant is the Secretary General (utenriksråd) with an Assistant Secretary General as substitute (the latter also with a special responsibility for international development issues).
The Ministry currently has nine departments, each headed by a Director General[2] (known in Norwegian as ekspedisjonssjef)[3]
Department for European Affairs and International Trade
Department for Security Policy and the High North
Department for Regional Affairs
Department for Multilateral Affairs
Department for Sustainable Development
Department for Culture, Business Relations and Protocol