'I’m VERY confident!' Norway’s foreign minister EXCITED by uplifting Brexit opportunities
NORWAY’S foreign minister said the Brexit progress has so far been "uplifting" and the country remains positive about future trade opportunities with the UK.
Norway foreign minister: Brexit progress 'quite uplifting'
Norwegian Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soreide said she is “very confident” there will be no issue in striking a deal with the EU after Brexit.
Speaking to Bloomberg News, Ms Eriksen Soreide said: “As a country, we would very much like to see an orderly Brexit.
“What we have seen so far just before Easter has been quite uplifting but there are still so many issues that remain.
“We are not afraid that there will be no agreements with the UK and Norway.
“On the contrary, we will be working hard with the UK to both get an outline of all the agreements that we will have, which ones needs to be renegotiated, what do we need of new agreements.
We are not afraid that there will be no agreements with the UK and Norway
“I feel very confident that this is one issue that will not cause any trouble, even in our bilateral relationship, it will not cause any trouble in the sense that the gas supplies will not be as predictable as they have been.”
Norway is a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), meaning Oslo pays for access to the single market. EFTA includes Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Norway is also a member of the European Economic Area (EEA) which provides the free movements of persons, goods, services and capital within the single market.
But a political expert warned the EU could face a furious response from Norway over its relationship with the bloc if the UK is given a good Brexit deal.
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Jan Erik Grindheim, a Norwegian political scientist at Civita warned Norway could want to go back to the table to demand a better deal with the bloc depending on Britain’s future relationship with Brussels.
Speaking exclusively to Express.co.uk, he said: “I think on the ‘no side’ to European Union membership, they will demand that. They have already said that if Britain gets a good agreement they will demand a better deal.
“Also, researchers like myself and people are more balance would say this is a possibility.
“I don’t think we can have a better agreement than we have. Apart from the fact that I would like full membership, of course.
“But, not only the hard-liners but also in the centre of politics would argue that we should at least look at a new situation if Britain gets a good agreement.”
German MEP Elmar Brok said Norwegian MPs have warned him Brussels "must not give the same treatment or better than we have" to the UK if it does not follow the same EU rules as them.