commitment to human rights will continue even without an embassy: Norway Ambassador

• Underlying causes of the crisis in Sri Lanka require commitment from the government and the Sri Lankan people  
• Sri Lanka has made progress in some areas regarding reconciliation and implementation of the UNHRC resolution.  
• There are still significant challenges in the human rights situation in the country 

Ahead of the closure of the Norwegian Embassy in Colombo,  Ambassador Trine Jøranli Eskedal takes questions from Daily Mirror on the reason for it and the future of bilateral relations in the absence of a resident mission in Colombo. Norway started its mission in Colombo in 1996 given its role in Sri Lanka’s peace and reconciliation process.  
excerpts:

Q   What is the reason for Norway to close down its mission in Sri Lanka in its move to rationalize its foreign missions?

In September last year, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in  Oslo decided to make certain changes in its diplomatic presence abroad.  These changes included closing several missions across the world,  including our Embassy in Colombo.  

The background for this difficult decision is the need to  shift our diplomatic resources abroad. To uphold Norwegian interests, we  see the need to scale up our presence in some locations, particularly  in Europe. Due to budgetary constraints, this also entails drawdowns in  other places. In this situation, it has become clear that it will not be  possible to maintain a permanent mission in Colombo.  

As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I would like to reiterate that  the closing of the Embassy in Colombo is not an expression of  dissatisfaction on any matter and is based purely on overall  administrative assessments related to the need for reallocation of the  Foreign Service’s resources. Norway values the strong ties that exist  between our two countries and wishes to maintain our excellent bilateral  relationship. Relations as longstanding as ours involve extensive  informal cooperation, people-to-people ties and a wide range of  activities. Our aim is for the excellent ties between our two countries  to continue.  

Norway intends to accredit the Head of Mission and assign  diplomatic staff at the Norwegian Embassy in New Delhi to Sri Lanka to  ensure the continuation of the amiable and long-standing bilateral  diplomatic relations. An Honorary Consul-General for Norway based in  Colombo will also be announced in due course. 

Q   What does this mean for Norway’s relationship with Sri Lanka?

Norway has a long-standing and excellent relationship with  Sri Lanka. We continue to work to preserve the good relationship going  forward, even without a constant presence in Colombo.  Historically, an important part of the rationale for our  Embassy in Colombo was linked to our role in the peace and  reconciliation process. Today, Norwegian involvement in Sri Lanka is more  limited.  

The closing of the Embassy does not imply that Norway will  stop engaging in developments in Sri Lanka. Our countries have strong  people-to-people links, many Norwegians visit Sri Lanka for tourism and  there is deep concern and interest among the Norwegian population for  the welfare of the Sri Lankan people. It is an important aim for the  Norwegian government to maintain the relationship through other  diplomatic means than a locally based embassy. 

Q   What does it mean for development assistance to Sri Lanka?

The closure of the Embassy in Colombo only concerns  Norway’s physical presence in Colombo. It is not a decision about the  future of our bilateral development cooperation as such. Norwegian aid  to Sri Lanka, which goes back to the 1960s, has gradually reduced in  recent times, as Sri Lanka transitioned to middle-income country status.  

However, Norway still supports a range of ongoing,  long-term development projects, such as support for employment and food  security in former war-affected areas (through the ILO) and support to  UNDP’s governance programme to realize SDG 16. A decision has already  been made to transfer one cooperation project to Norad, for  administration there under Norad’s Fish for Development programme. For  the rest of the cooperation programme, an assessment will be made in  future.  

In 2021, total Norwegian development assistance to Sri  Lanka was NOK 59.7 million, of which NOK 21 million was channelled  through the Embassy. In 2022, during Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, Norway  provided humanitarian support amounting to a total of NOK 18 million to  the humanitarian response in Sri Lanka through UN organizations (NOK 13  million through the World Food Programme (WFP), UNICEF (United Nations  Children’s Fund) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and approx.  NOK 5 million via the UN’s Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF).  

It is of course possible to continue development  cooperation with Sri Lanka even without a locally based embassy. In  other countries, such as Guatemala and Zimbabwe, Norway has maintained  significant aid cooperation even though our physical presence in those  countries has ended. 

Q   How will Norway help Sri Lanka to overcome the economic crisis?

We recognize that Sri Lanka currently finds itself in an  exceptionally difficult situation, given the economic crisis, the  humanitarian needs, and the change of government last year. One way in  which Norway will help Sri Lanka is through the continuation of  development cooperation with Sri Lanka. The same applies to the  possibility of contributing humanitarian support in the future. Despite  the decision to close the Embassy, Norway will continue to engage in the  development of Sri Lanka.  
However, it is also pertinent to mention that the  underlying causes of the crisis in Sri Lanka require commitment from the  government and the Sri Lankan people, and also multilateral solutions  and cooperation. The international community is working together to  contribute to support the Sri Lankan authorities in finding a way  forward. Norway will continue to follow the situation and engage in  constructive processes that contribute to sustainable solutions for Sri  Lanka. 

Q   What is the latest focus of Norway - Sri Lanka bilateral ties?

As I mentioned earlier, in addition to development  cooperation which went back to the 1960s, historically, an important  part of the rationale for our Embassy in Colombo was linked to our role  in the peace and reconciliation process.  
However, the pillars of our commitment to Sri Lanka will  not change and these continue to be our focus in Norway-Sri Lanka  bilateral ties. These pillars include a commitment to human rights,  including the issues of reconciliation, accountability, transitional  justice, and the inclusion of minorities, after the civil war in Sri  Lanka. We will continue to follow up on these issues, including through  the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. 

Q   What is your assessment of Sri Lanka’s achievements on  the ground as far as reconciliation is concerned and the implementation  of the UNHRC resolution?

While Sri Lanka has made progress in some areas regarding  reconciliation and the implementation of the UNHRC resolution, there are  still significant challenges in the human rights situation in the  country. Norwegian authorities will continue to follow the situation in  Sri Lanka, including how the country’s authorities follow up on the  resolutions adopted by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.  
At the next meeting of the Human Rights Council, there will  be a report presented on the implementation of the resolution on the  situation in Sri Lanka. As before, Norway will engage actively on the  issue, in close consultation with like-minded countries. An important  pillar of Norway’s engagement in Sri Lanka is human rights. This  commitment to the human rights agenda will continue even without an  embassy located in Colombo. 

Q   How do you recommend Sri Lanka as a tourist destination?

Having lived in Sri Lanka for the past four years, I have  had the opportunity to travel extensively in Sri Lanka. Your country is  unique - beautiful with a wide array of attractions from beaches to  nature, wildlife, cultural attractions and more. There is something for  everyone. We have always been encouraging Norwegians to visit Sri Lanka,  and we are pleased to see that the tourist arrival figures have  increased in recent months. There are also some Norwegian businesses  involved in the tourism sector in Sri Lanka. 

Q   Norway is a country with expertise in green energy. Will you encourage investments in Sri Lanka in this field?

Yes. Norway has actively promoted green energy-related  investments in Sri Lanka, as there is great potential here. We believe  that renewable energy is part of the answer to the key challenges faced  by Sri Lanka in terms of climate change and economic dependence on oil,  gas and coal imports.  

Norwegian Development Fund (Norfund) has recently made  their first investment of USD 4 million in renewable energy in Sri Lanka  together with the French company Volta and the Sri Lanka partner Gaia  Greenenergy Group. The plan is to accelerate the construction of solar  power plants, developed and installed on the roofs of Sri Lankan  schools. The investment is made from the new Norwegian Climate  Investment Fund that was set up last year to be managed by Norfund. Sri  Lanka is one of eight prioritized countries for the new fund. Other  Norwegian private sector investors have also shown an interest in  investing in green energy projects in Sri Lanka, and the current reforms  in the sector are promising for this.  

On the other hand, there is also ongoing university  cooperation between the University of Western Norway and the University  of Jaffna on renewable energy. As part of this cooperation, the Embassy  in Colombo helped to set up a lab at the university and opened the first  floating solar plant in Sri Lanka. The Embassy in New Delhi will  continue to encourage investments and help to scale up activities in Sri  Lanka in this field.