The Norwegian Parliament’s Arctic Delegation in Washington DC: “Never Been This Disappointed”
Norwegian parliamentary politician Bård Ludvig Thorheim (Conservatives) is in Washington, D.C., with the parliament's Arctic delegation. (Archive photo from 2022: Trine Jonassen)
The Norwegian Parliament's Delegation for Arctic Cooperation is visiting the United States this week. The visit began in Washington D.C. and will end in Minneapolis.
The delegation consists of delegation leader Lars Haltbrekken (Socialist Left) from Sør-Trøndelag, deputy leader Willfred Nordlund (Center) from Nordland, and Bård Ludvig Thorheim (Conservatives) also from Nordland.
Thorheim is the leader of the parliament members' Friends of the US Association.
The official program started on Monday morning, February 24th, local time, and will go on until Friday morning, February 28th.
Disappointed
Several elected officials from both chambers of Congress will meet in Washington, D.C., to discuss Arctic cooperation, rare minerals, and energy security. They will also meet with Senator Lisa Murkowski (R) from Alaska, who is herself involved in Arctic issues.
Thorheim tells Avisa Nordland that he has never been so disappointed:
"I have never been so disappointed with the USA as I have been in the last week, and with what Donald Trump has come up with so far. I am very interested in seeing how deep this goes in political Washington. How do they look at it?" says the Conservative politician.
Space operations
"This is an important visit. I look forward to meeting Murkowski, who is an experienced Republican with a strong commitment to Arctic issues. We will, among other things, discuss the Arctic situation with her," says delegation leader Lars Haltbrekken in a press release.
First parliament delegation to visit Washington after the election.
Space activities will also be a central topic in D.C., including visits to NASA and the company Northrop Grumman. In addition, the delegation will meet representatives from the Norwegian business sector in the United States.
This year marks 200 years since the first Norwegians boarded the ship "Restauration" in Stavanger, heading for New York. This was the start of a large Norwegian migration.
Church meeting
As part of the anniversary celebration, the delegation will travel to Minnesota to meet state politicians and the Norwegian-American community in the state.
The delegation will meet with Governor Tim Walz in Minneapolis. The meeting will conclude with an open meeting at the Norway House.
There will also be a meeting with students from Augsburg College and St. Olaf College, as well as a visit to the Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church of Minneapolis, a Norwegian-language church with Gunnar Kristiansen as pastor and leader of the congregation.
This is the first delegation from the Norwegian parliament to visit Washington after Donald Trump (R) became president.
