- Jul 12, 2018
- 9,346
In Oslo, a statement to the press was held at the headquarters of the Minister of Foreign Affairs. Jakob Vinter, who had the Director of Kripos standing next to him, stated the following after a brief introduction by his press secretary:
"Good afternoon. Under my own recommendation, and with permission from the Crown and Council of State, I have just sent a message to the Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs that all Chinese diplomatic staff, including the Chinese ambassador to Norway, are hereby Persona Non Grata and now have..." he checked his watch, "approximately 47 hours and 40 minutes to leave the Kingdom of Norway before their diplomatic immunity expires. The Norwegian government has also revoked China's privilege to operate any kind of diplomatic mission in Norway, and we are currently in the process of removing all diplomatic staff from the People's Republic of China. This is all being done in accordance with the General Assembly Resolution, 'Resolution for International Relations'.
"The reason why His Majesty's government has ordered the expulsion of Chinese diplomats is because we have come upon irrefutable evidence that the Chinese government attempted to interfere in the recent Storting election. To give you a concise rundown of this, Johan Berg, Director of Kripos, will now speak."
Jakob stepped beside the podium and allowed Director Berg to step up.
"Thank you, Minister Vinter," Berg said. "Yesterday afternoon, member of the Storting and leader of the Red Party, Alrek Ovesen, met with Prime Minister Holt and handed over a message from the Chinese Ambassador to Norway, Zuan Xi. The message stated that the Chinese government wished to provide funds to the Red Party in order to aid them in the parliamentary election. Mister Ovesen informed the Prime Minister, myself, and the Minister of Justice that he just became aware of the message and that neither he nor the Red Party had accepted any funds from Communist China. Mister Ovesen and the Red Party have cooperated fully with Kripos." Director Berg stepped aside and let Minister Vinter step back up to the podium.
"Thank you, Director Berg. His Majesty's government takes this attempt to interfere in Norway's elections as a direct affront to our democracy and an act of aggression to Norway's sovereignty. The Council of State, along with the King, also agreed that had this transaction actually taken place, it would have been considered an act of war. A public transcript of the message, along with a declassified memo from Kripos will be issued shortly after I finish my statements here today.
"I would like to add that Mister Ovesen and the Red Party have cooperated in-full with Kripos and the Minister of Foreign Affairs throughout our investigation. We have found no indication of foul-play from the Red Party, and His Majesty's government applauds Mister Ovesen for informing the Prime Minister as quickly as possible.
"The Kingdom of Norway condemns the People's Republic of China for attempting to exploit our democratic institutions. Such attempts are not now, nor will they ever be, considered acceptable from any nation."
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A photocopy of the message sent to the Red Party was issued to the press, along with the following Kripos document which was a declassified memo from the Director of Kripos to the Minister of Justice.
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"Good afternoon. Under my own recommendation, and with permission from the Crown and Council of State, I have just sent a message to the Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs that all Chinese diplomatic staff, including the Chinese ambassador to Norway, are hereby Persona Non Grata and now have..." he checked his watch, "approximately 47 hours and 40 minutes to leave the Kingdom of Norway before their diplomatic immunity expires. The Norwegian government has also revoked China's privilege to operate any kind of diplomatic mission in Norway, and we are currently in the process of removing all diplomatic staff from the People's Republic of China. This is all being done in accordance with the General Assembly Resolution, 'Resolution for International Relations'.
"The reason why His Majesty's government has ordered the expulsion of Chinese diplomats is because we have come upon irrefutable evidence that the Chinese government attempted to interfere in the recent Storting election. To give you a concise rundown of this, Johan Berg, Director of Kripos, will now speak."
Jakob stepped beside the podium and allowed Director Berg to step up.
"Thank you, Minister Vinter," Berg said. "Yesterday afternoon, member of the Storting and leader of the Red Party, Alrek Ovesen, met with Prime Minister Holt and handed over a message from the Chinese Ambassador to Norway, Zuan Xi. The message stated that the Chinese government wished to provide funds to the Red Party in order to aid them in the parliamentary election. Mister Ovesen informed the Prime Minister, myself, and the Minister of Justice that he just became aware of the message and that neither he nor the Red Party had accepted any funds from Communist China. Mister Ovesen and the Red Party have cooperated fully with Kripos." Director Berg stepped aside and let Minister Vinter step back up to the podium.
"Thank you, Director Berg. His Majesty's government takes this attempt to interfere in Norway's elections as a direct affront to our democracy and an act of aggression to Norway's sovereignty. The Council of State, along with the King, also agreed that had this transaction actually taken place, it would have been considered an act of war. A public transcript of the message, along with a declassified memo from Kripos will be issued shortly after I finish my statements here today.
"I would like to add that Mister Ovesen and the Red Party have cooperated in-full with Kripos and the Minister of Foreign Affairs throughout our investigation. We have found no indication of foul-play from the Red Party, and His Majesty's government applauds Mister Ovesen for informing the Prime Minister as quickly as possible.
"The Kingdom of Norway condemns the People's Republic of China for attempting to exploit our democratic institutions. Such attempts are not now, nor will they ever be, considered acceptable from any nation."
::::::::::
A photocopy of the message sent to the Red Party was issued to the press, along with the following Kripos document which was a declassified memo from the Director of Kripos to the Minister of Justice.
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