RIYADH, 28 April 2008 — Norway’s Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store arrived here yesterday at the head of an official delegation to hold talks with senior Saudi officials on a range of bilateral and international issues. Store was met at Riyadh Airbase by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Nizar ibn Obaid Madani and a number of officials.
“Store is visiting the Kingdom for two days during which he will hold talks with his counterpart Prince Saud Al-Faisal and call on other senior Saudi officials,” said Norwegian Ambassador Jan Bugge-Mahrt.
He added that the Norwegian foreign minister would discuss with Saudi leaders conflicts within the Middle East, as well as energy and climate politics with special reference to bilateral relations.
In a statement issued before his departure for the Kingdom, Store said, “Norway would like to forge closer relations in different sectors with Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states. Oslo has also been supporting and calling on the international community to lift the boycott on Hamas and restore comprehensive peace in the Middle East region.”
Norway has recently transferred $10 million to an international joint aid fund to finance the salaries of Palestinian Authority employees.
Referring to developments on the energy front, Store said, “Saudi Arabia and Norway will cooperate to get carbon capture and storage (CCS)... recognized as a way for rich countries to offset their emissions.”
CCS involves trapping carbon dioxide (CO2) from industrial processes, such as power generation from fossil fuels, and storing it underground or below the seabed. The technology is still in a pioneering phase and is not yet commercial. Saudi Arabia and OPEC are in support of the process.
