Fra Israels til palestinernes beste venn

Etter 1948 var Norge en av Israels aller beste venner. Palestinernes skjebne vakte ingen interesse. De var glemt. Etter krigen i 1967 forandret disse holdningene seg. Israel var blitt en okkupasjonsmakt. Det palestinske flyktningproblemet var like uløst. PLO hadde også endret politikk, var blitt langt mer kompromissvillig og gikk inn for en tostatsløsning. Like fullt hadde Norge den mest restriktive politikken overfor PLO i hele Vest-Europa. Først i 1986 fikk PLO et informasjonskontor i Norge. I 1989 kom Norges første offisielle besøk til PLO i Tunis. Gjennom hele 1980-tallet var Arbeiderpartiet pådriveren for den nye norske politikken. Den var bygd på det nye tillitsforholdet til PLO og det nære forholdet til Israel. I 1993 forhandlet Norge fram Oslo-avtalen. Norges nære forhold til Israel hadde gjort Norge akseptabel. PLO skjønte også at det trengte en Israel-venn. Men i Norge var det ikke lenger noen sterk sympati for Israel. Det var den norske rollen som gjorde at Norge ikke kunne føre noen demonstrasjonspolitikk og markere standpunkter som Israel fant uakseptable. Først under Gazakrigen i 2023 har Norge hatt en ny pådriverrolle, også internasjonalt, for å få slutt på krigen og få i gang forhandlinger om en tostatsløsning. Abstract in English:From Israel’s to the Palestinians’ Best Friend?After 1948, Norway became one of Israel’s closest friends. The fate of the Palestinians did not arouse any interest. After the war in 1967, these attitudes changed. Israel had become an occupying power. The Palestinian refugee problem remained unresolved. The PLO had also changed its policy and advocated for a two-state solution. Nevertheless, Norway had the most restrictive policy towards the PLO in all of Western Europe. It was not until 1986 that the PLO received an information office in Norway. In 1989, Norway made its first official visit to the PLO in Tunis. Throughout the 1980s, the Labour Party was the driving force behind the new Norwegian policy. It was built on the new trust relationship with the PLO and the close relationship with Israel. In 1993, Norway negotiated the Oslo Accords. Norway’s close relationship with Israel had made it possible. The PLO also realized that it needed a friend of Israel. However, there was no longer strong sympathy for Israel in Norway. Norway’s role forced Norway to pursue a policy acceptable for Israel. Only during the Gaza War in 2023 has Norway been at the forefront internationally in efforts to end the war and initiate negotiations for a two-state solution

Political science · Venn diagram · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · Health and Conflict Studies · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies · Psychology