Norway: State fund Statens pensjonsfond will soon be allowed to invest in defense companies

The Norwegian sovereign wealth fund should be able to use its trillion-dollar assets to invest in defense companies again in the future, even if they produce nuclear weapons. This is recommended by a commission set up by the government. If politicians implement the proposal, billions could flow into shares in Airbus, Boeing or Lockheed Martin. For ethical reasons, these are not yet in the portfolio of the 2.3 trillion “Statens pensjonsfond”.

The head of the Norwegian Red Cross, Grete Herlofson, expressed criticism of the commission's recommendation. "By investing in such weapons, we are sending a signal to the whole world: These weapons are acceptable," she said. “That endangers lives.”

Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg, former NATO Secretary General, commissioned the review by a commission. Until now, purchases of shares in companies that produce nuclear weapons were strictly prohibited. In the future, however, according to the Commission, this should be allowed under certain conditions, for example if the companies are based in countries allied with Norway.

The commission also recommends fundamentally weakening the role of the independent Ethics Council. In the future, this will only provide analyses. The central bank that manages the fund will decide in the future on a possible sale of shares and on the publication of the reasons. Commission head Svein Gjedrem justified this with the increased geopolitical vulnerability of the fund. Due to its size, the fund has become more visible abroad and therefore more vulnerable. For example, the US government under Donald Trump criticized Norway after the fund sold its shares in the US group Caterpillar.