Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg (Labour) congratulates Barack Obama for winning the elections and says he looks forward to working with the president in four years.
In his message, the Norwegian Prime Minister pointed out that Norway has very good relations with the U.S. and the two countries under Barack Obama worked very well on many international issues including the view of the UN in dealing with climate change and particularly in relation to the economic problems of the world economy.
Stoltenberg stressed that Norway and the Norwegian government would cooperate with the U.S., even if Mitt Romney had won the presidential election. On the other hand Norwegian Foreign minister Espen Barth Eide stressed that they will of course work better with a president who is ideologically close to them, implying Obama.
Hopes for Middle East
Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide are also hopeful that Barack Obama over the next four years will deal with the conflict between the Palestinians and Israel more efficiently.
– I hope that Obama now feel freer to go into the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, since he will not have concerns for reelection, says Eide VG .
Norwegian Foreign minister also said that the biggest difference between Bush to Obama is the vision of international cooperation. Obama has a very different view on the importance of international cooperation in the UN, and even Asia coming increasingly to the fore in relation to Europe, Obama stands firmly on the NATO alliance. This international vision is very good for Norway, says Eide.
The world will see a new Obama
Conservative Party leader Erna Solberg think the world will see a different version of U.S. President Barack Obama for the next four years.
Solberg suggests that the president will take a tougher stance about their main priorities. She also thinks Obama is facing major challenges, particularly in terms of economy. Republicans retain a majority, and this will bring challenges for Obama to implement his political program.
Navarsete is very happy
Local Government and Regional Development Minister Liv Signe does not deny that she is very pleased that President Barack Obama was re-elected.
According to Navarsete, this result means that Norway can continue the good cooperation with the U.S. and the Obama administration. The minister believes, however, that the relationship between the U.S. and Norway would change if Mitt Romney had won.