NORWAY. Kingdom of Norway
A country in Northern Europe, occupying the western and northern parts of the Scandinavian Peninsula. Area - 324.2 thousand km²; together with the Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, the islands of Jan Mayen, Bouvet in the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean, and others - 387 thousand km². Capital - Oslo (522 thousand), major cities: Bergen (237 thousand), Trondheim (156 thousand), Stavanger (114 thousand). Administrative-territorial division - 19 fylker (counties, including the capital, equated to a fylke). Population - 4.6 million (2005); Norwegians (95%), Sámi, Kvens, Finns, Swedes, and others.
Official language - Norwegian. Dominant religion - Lutheranism. Currency - krone = 100 øre.
Has diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation (established with the USSR on March 10, 1924).
National holiday - May 17 - Constitution Day (1814).
Norway is a constitutional monarchy. The current constitution came into effect in 1814. The head of state is the king (since January 1991 - Harald V; the House of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg). The highest legislative body is the Storting (169 deputies), elected by universal suffrage through a proportional system for a term of 4 years. After elections, at the first session of the Storting, 40 deputies are elected from its composition, which constitute the Lagting (upper house), the remaining 129 are the Odelsting. The last elections were held in September 2005. The executive power belongs to the king, who appoints the government (Council of State) headed by the Prime Minister (since October 2005 - J. Stoltenberg; Labour Party). The government is a coalition (Labour Party, Socialist Left Party, Centre Party).
Political parties: The Labour Party (AP) - founded in 1887, social-democratic, the largest in the country; in 1935-65, 1971-72, 1973-81, 1986-89, 1990-97, and 2000-01 - the ruling party. 61 seats in the Storting, leader - J. Stoltenberg. The Conservative Party (H) - founded in 1884, represents the interests of big capital. 23 seats, leader - E. Solberg. The Progress Party - founded in 1973 by A. Lange; right-wing. 38 seats, chair - C. Hagen. The Socialist Left Party (SV) - founded in 1975 based on leftist forces, socialist orientation. 15 seats, chair - C. Halvorsen. The Christian Democratic Party (KrF) - founded in 1933, advocates for religious values, expresses the positions of the religious part of the population. 11 seats, chair - D. Høybråten. The Centre Party (SP) - founded in 1920, represents the interests of agricultural producers and fishermen. 11 seats, leader - O. Haga. The Venstre Party - founded in 1884, liberal bourgeois. 10 seats, chair - L. Spuntheim. Other parties and political groups - Coastal Party, Liberal People's Party, Communist Party of Norway, etc. - are not represented in the Storting.
Public organizations: The Central Organization of Trade Unions in Norway (LO) - founded in 1899, the largest trade center in the country, uniting about 30 industry trade unions. The Cooperative Organization of Norway plays an important role in the country's economy.
The first Norwegian king ascended the throne in 872. The IX-XI centuries in Norway - the Viking Age. At the beginning of the XI century, Christianity was introduced, by the end of the century a centralized monarchy was firmly established. In the mid-XIV century, an epidemic of plague disrupted the economic and socio-political life of the country, leading to a gradual loss of independence. After the Danish-Swedish-Norwegian union (XIV-XVI centuries), the country completely came under Danish control.
In 1814, by the decision of the anti-Napoleonic coalition, Norway entered into a union with Sweden. In the same year, the first parliament of Norway was convened, which adopted the constitution of the country.
Norway regained state independence in 1905, dissolving the union with Sweden. A referendum determined the monarchical form of government. Prince Carl of Denmark was invited to rule Norway, taking the name Haakon VII.
During World War I and the early part of World War II, Norway maintained a policy of neutrality. On April 9, 1940, the country was attacked by Germany; the king and government were forced to evacuate to Great Britain. During the occupation, a Resistance movement operated in Norway. In October 1944, the Red Army liberated the Arctic region, including the northern areas of Norway, during the Petsamo-Kirkenes operation.
Since 1945, Norway has been a member of the UN. In 1949, it joined NATO. Since 1949 - a member of the Council of Europe, since 1952 - the Nordic Council, since 1960 - EFTA and OECD, since 1992 - an associated member of the EEA.
Norway is a developed industrial-agricultural country. In 2004, GDP grew by 2.4% and amounted to $193.2 billion.
The country has large reserves of hydroenergy, forest resources, and significant deposits of iron, copper, zinc, lead, nickel, molybdenum, silver, granite, marble, and others. Extractable reserves of oil and gas amount to 10 billion tons in oil equivalent.
The oil and gas industries dominate the economy, accounting for 19% of GDP and 46% of total exports (about 1% of the workforce is employed in these sectors). In 2003, approximately 214 million tons of oil and gas were extracted from Norway's continental shelf (in oil equivalent). Other leading industries include petrochemicals, electrometallurgy, electrochemistry, radioelectronics, mining, and pulp and paper. Norway holds a leading position in the world in electricity production per capita, pulp and paper mass, aluminum, and ferroalloys. More than 140 billion kWh of electricity is produced annually, with production (in monetary terms, million kroner): pig iron, steel, ferroalloys, non-ferrous metals - 38,000; pulp and paper mass - 22,000.
In agriculture, small family farms (up to 10 hectares) prevail. Production and marketing cooperation is widespread. The leading sector is intensive livestock farming focused on meat and dairy production. Sheep farming is well developed. Norway provides itself with about half of its agricultural products through domestic production. Fishing (catching about 2.6 million tons of fish per year) and timber harvesting (over 7 million m³) occupy an important place in the economy. Norway ranks among the leading countries in the world in fish catch and export.
The main mode of transport is maritime. The tonnage of the merchant fleet (vessels with a displacement of over 100 tons) exceeds 18 million gross registered tons. More than 90% of the tonnage is engaged in international transport under foreign charters. Norway is among the top countries in the world for domestic passenger transport by air (per capita). The length of railways (state-owned, over 50% electrified) is 4,000 km, and roads - 90,000 km.
The main volume of investments in Norway is in the fuel and energy sector. Total investments in this sector increased by 10.5% in 2004, amounting to $10.8 billion. The share of foreign trade in GDP exceeds 40%. In 2004, exports amounted to $122.8 billion, imports - $83 billion. The main exported goods and services from Norway: crude oil and natural gas (in 2003 - 43% of total exports), shipping and transport services in the oil and gas sector, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, fish and seafood. The basis of Norwegian imports is machinery and consumer goods. The main foreign trade partners are EU countries, the USA, and Canada.
In the export-oriented economy of Norway, the government plays an important regulatory role, maintaining significant financial participation in national companies in the manufacturing sector. It ranks 6th in the world in terms of the competitiveness of its economy (according to the World Economic Forum data for 2004). In terms of per capita indicators, the country holds a leading position in the world in electricity production, oil and gas production and export, aluminum and ferroalloys, mineral fertilizers, paper mass, industrial explosives, fish catch, as well as in the tonnage of the merchant fleet.
Norway is among the countries with a high standard of living: in terms of GDP per capita (in 2004 - $42,000), it ranks among the top five countries in the world. Since 2000, Norway has held the first place in the world according to the so-called Human Development Index developed by the UN. At the same time, it is one of the world leaders in taxation levels - averaging over 45%. The inflation rate was 2.5% in 2004; the unemployment rate was about 5% of the working population.
The education system in Norway includes 4 universities. Among the largest newspapers are the daily "Verdens Gang" (365 thousand copies), "Aftenposten" (250 thousand), "Dagbladet" (183 thousand), and others. The national information agency is the Norwegian Telegraph Bureau - NTB (joint-stock company). The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation dominates the radio and television system.