Between "russophobia" and "bridge-building": The Norwegian Government and the Soviet Union 1940-1945

• Main Author: Holtsmark, Sven G.
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: Institutt for forsvarsstudier 1988
• Subjects: North Atlantic
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11250/99453

Strong elements of traditional Scandinavian "russophobia" continued to influence the evolution of Norwegian-Soviet relations during the second world war, even when the Norwegian government gradually redirected its official foreign policy doctrine from strong commitments to North Atlantic military cooperation towards a doctrine of "bridge-building" might be expected to have influenced Norway's relations with the Soviet Union. one of the aims of this study is to give a general presentation of Norwegian-Soviet relations during the war. On this background the study further examines how the redirectioning of Norway's foreign policy line made itself felt in the various fields of Norwegian-Soviet relations. The study tends to emphasize the continued presence of a skeptical attitude towards the Soviet Union in Norwegian government circles. This factor made itself felt when the two countries set out to lay the foundations of war-time cooperation, and also influenced Norwegian long-term foreign policy and security planning.