Il Primo Ministro norvegese ha rilasciato un accordo informale sulle Svalbard

Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Støre said on Thursday that the Svalbard Archipelago was firmly under Norway’s control after Donald Trump said he wants to annex Greenland.

Støre made the comments on Thursday in light of the incoming US President’s overtures on Greenland, and after the US State Department told Congress it was worried about Chinese activites in the Arctic.

“We have [control]. Svalbard is Norway,” Støre said on a politics show by public broadcaster NRK.

He was also asked whether he had any worries about whether US media attention could turn to Svalbard in light of Trump saying a US takeover of Greenland “must happen” and refusing to rule out military coercion.

“Then I would be very happy to be invited [to discuss the issue with US media]. Svalbard is Norway, and Svalbard is safe,” he said.

The PM added that Trump’s suggestions that Denmark could be coerced into handing over Greenland were wrong.

“It is not right to suggest the use of military force against an ally. It is not right to suggest that one will take over land under the sovereignty of others,” Støre said.

Halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, Svalbard is fully a part of Norway rather than an autonomous region like Greenland.

However, while the Svalbard Treaty grants Norway full sovereignty and doesn’t allow the archipelago to be used for military purposes, free entry and residence is in place for nationals of signatory states and all associated signatory states, like the US, Russia and China, have equal rights to conduct business.

Like Greenland, Svalbard is seen as strategically important, with Norway, the US, China and Russia having major interests on the archipelago.

Norway has made several attempts in recent years to crack down on foreign influence on the archipelago, such as changing voting laws for the local government and the state calling off the sale of land to prevent it falling into Chinese hands last year.

Andreas Østhagen, a researcher at the Fridtjof Nansen Institute, told NRK it was unlikely that the US would ramp up pressure on Norway to hand over control of Svalbard to the US.

“As I see it, the US is satisfied with how Norway is handling Svalbard, but that doesn’t mean we can’t see such statements [similar to the ones about Greenland] from Trump,” he said.