KIRKENES, October 25. /TASS/. King Harald V of Norway said on Saturday that Norway and Russia had enough tasks that they would be able to settle only jointly.
“We want that Norwegian and Russian people live side by side, as befits good neighbours,” King Harald V said at a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of liberation of Norway’s northern regions from Nazi occupation by the Soviet Red Army.
He said it is very important to be able to build bridges over contradictions, solving problems and meeting the emerging challenges.
The events the two countries lived through together
Russia and Norway should cherish the memory of the events the two countries lived through together during the World War II, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg said during festivities marking the 70th anniversary of the liberation of eastern Finnmark, a Norwegian district occupied by Nazi forces during the WWII.
“The liberation of the northern part of Norway by the Red Army was an extremely important event,” she said, also marking the fact that the Soviet troops left Norway after the war ended.
In reply to the query about the current situation in relations between the two countries, she told TASS that they had been seriously affected as a result of events in Ukraine.
She said the main problem at the moment was that Russia was violating norms of international law. “Now it depends a lot on the Russian leadership whether a ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine will be complied with,” Erna Solberg said.