No, he’s not running away. Even if the news comes at a remarkable time: in the middle of the Russia-Ukraine crisis, the NATO Secretary General announced that he was looking for a new job – Jens Stoltenberg will become head of the Norwegian central bank. However, he will not start there until December, when his term in NATO will long be over. It ends in September.
Instead of talking to the world about Russian aggression and Europe’s freedom, Stoltenberg will in future explain the intricacies of the interest rate hike to the Norwegians. What sounds like the retreat of a 62-year-old statesman from the front into warm offices is actually an adventure: the man, whose down-to-earth and efficient manner has primarily made friends, is facing a sharp headwind in Oslo .
It is the circumstances of his appointment that have caused an uproar in Norway. In fact, there is hardly anyone who does not emphasize that Stoltenberg is well qualified for his job. He is an economist and adept communicator. Not only does he bring international weight and assertiveness to the table, he also has economic experience with him: from his time as finance minister and later as prime minister of the country from 2000 to 2001 and from 2005 to 2013.
But then there lies the problem. The political independence of the central bank is enshrined in law. Jens Stoltenberg is the first ex-politician to be made head of the central bank in half a century. What’s more, he is a social democrat appointed by a social democratic government. In fact, as Prime Minister, Stoltenberg was once the superior of the current Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre. For many, the whole thing smelled like nepotism and a Norwegian “Old Boys Club”, especially when confidential dinners with oil fund boss Nicolai Tangen became known.
Jens Stoltenberg has dedicated his life to politics since he first became involved in the youth organization of the Labor Party at the age of 14. Before leaving NATO in 2014, he shaped Norway as head of government like few others – especially with his leadership after the massacre of social democratic youth on the island of Utøya in 2011, in which Stoltenberg’s acquaintances were also murdered. At that time he urged Norway to “more democracy, more openness, but never naivety”.
Jens Stoltenberg himself asked the Norwegians to trust him on Friday: He has long experience in “not exceeding the limits of integrity” and stands up for the independence of the central bank. He will not suspend his membership of the Social Democrats. The government does not need the votes in parliament for Stoltenberg’s appointment, but it is unusual for consensus-oriented Norway that a majority of parties voted against the decision. A spokesman for the social-liberal party Venstre called the appointment “spectacular” and “unwise”.
Others welcomed the choice, the tabloid commentator Verden’s walk called them “brave” and “right”. In his new post, Stoltenberg will also oversee Norway’s oil fund — the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, with $1.3 trillion in assets and investments around the world. Stoltenberg’s defense attorneys say he is just the right person to steer the fund through the tumultuous years that are looming on the horizon of world politics. Stoltenberg himself says he “can’t wait” to get to work. Until then, they will still have enough to do for him at NATO.