During the meeting, Iran’s strong protest was conveyed to the Norwegian envoy. 

It was also stressed that the non-constructive statements of the Norwegian Parliament Speaker about the recent riots in Iran are considered interference in the internal affairs of the country.

The Norwegian ambassador also said in this meeting that he will convey Tehran’s message as soon as possible.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry has also summoned Britain’s ambassador to Tehran to express Tehran’s protest over hostile attempts by London-base Persian-language television channels to further instigate deadly riots that have erupted in several Iranian cities over the death of a young woman, who died at the hospital a few days after collapsing at a police station in the capital Tehran.

“In response to the hostile atmosphere being created by the London-based Farsi-language media outlets against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the UK ambassador [Simon Shercliff] was summoned yesterday by the foreign ministry’s Director General for Western Europe,” the ministry announced in a statement released on Sunday.

It added that a strongly-worded note of protest was lodged to the British diplomat over London’s hosting the media, which have fiercely sought in recent days to provoke protests and incite riots against the Iranian government.

The statement went on to stress that such bids amount to interference in Iran’s internal affairs and violate the country’s national sovereignty

Violent protests have broken out in several Iranian cities over the September 16 death of Mahsa Amini, a young Iranian woman who died at the hospital days after collapsing at a police station in the capital Tehran, where she and a group of others were receiving educational training on dress code rules.

Despite Iranian officials’ clarification on the circumstances surrounding Amini’s death, violent street protests have led to attacks on security officers and acts of vandalism against public property and sanctities.

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Norway’s Minister of Climate and Environment Espen Barth Eide has voiced support for Indonesia’s role in climate action, an official from the Environment and Forestry Ministry (KLHK) has informed.

“A few days ago, Minister of Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya, together with the Minister of Environment of Norway, Espen Barth Eide, planted mangroves together. He (Eide) strongly supports Indonesia’s role in climate change (action),” Secretary of the ministry’s Directorate General of Forestry Planning and Environmental Management (PKTL)Hanif Faisol Nurofiq said in a statement received in Jakarta on Friday.

The signing of a new agreement between Indonesia and Norway has become proof of Indonesia’s role in addressing global climate change issues, he added.

Nurofiq said, the involvement of the Norwegian Environment Minister in mangrove rehabilitation in Kalimantan shows that Indonesia is one of the countries that have significant role in climate change mitigation.

Indonesia and Norway recently inked an agreement to support efforts to boost the net absorption of greenhouse gas emissions in the forestry and land use sector (FoLU Net Sink) by 2030, which demonstrates the country’s interest in sustainable cooperation on climate.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) on ‘Partnership in Support of Indonesia’s Efforts to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Forestry and Other Land Use’ was inked on September 12, 2022.

The MoU covers cooperation on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation and capacity building to strengthen natural forest carbon sequestration through sustainable forest management, forest rehabilitation, and social forestry, including mangrove plantation.

Cooperation will also be carried out in the field of biodiversity conservation, reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and peatland restoration.

The Environment and Forestry Ministry has continued to raise awareness about FoLU Net Sink 2030 and climate change at the site level to encourage community participation.

“We invite the community. We provide education and understanding about the importance of climate change. We invite and involve the community to plant trees together,” he informed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday discussed with his Norwegian counterpart Jonas Gahr Store initiatives to mobilise climate finance for renewable energy projects for developing countries.

In a telephone conversation with Store, Modi emphasised the importance of ensuring equitable, timely and adequate climate finance for the developing world, and appreciated the Norwegian prime minister’s commitment to the cause.

“The two leaders reviewed various ongoing bilateral cooperation initiatives, including under the Task Force on blue economy,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement.
Modi and Store also expressed satisfaction at the increasing India-Norway collaboration in areas like green hydrogen, shipping, science and technology, and education, it said.

“Had a productive conversation on phone with Norwegian PM Jonas Gahr Store today. We reviewed our bilateral cooperation and discussed new initiatives in climate finance,” Modi said on Twitter.

In a tweet, the Norwegian Prime Minister’s Office said, “Prime Ministers Jonas Gahr Store and Narendra Modi spoke on the phone today in continued dialogue on our cooperation in the fields of energy, climate, trade, investments and blue economy. Norway-India bilateral relations strengthening and deepening across sectors.”

Modi and Store had met in May this year in Copenhagen.

Earlier this year, Norway had announced that it will join the International Solar Alliance, proposed by Modi in 2015.

The cooperation between India and Norway on climate, energy and environment has a long history and has been strengthening in the last few years.

Last month, as part of the Norway-India global energy transition partnership, the Norwegian Climate Investment Fund entered into an agreement to take a 49 per cent stake in a 420 MW solar power plant being built in Rajasthan by Italian firm Enel Green Power.

The climate investment fund will allocate 10 billion Norwegian Korne (approximately USD 1 billion) over the next five years, with India being a priority market.

By Erlan Karin, State Counsellor of Kazakhstan

Another Presidential Address opens a fundamentally new political milestone in the history of the country. The head of state is setting qualitatively different standards for the system of power. It is the utmost transparency in the adoption of the most important political decisions, constant renewal, and open competition.

The President’s decision to make the entire electoral schedule public is an unprecedented step for Kazakhstan’s political practice.

The launch of the entire election cycle is conditioned by the need for a radical reboot of our political system and is fully consistent with the rationale of the constitutional reform supported by the majority of citizens in the June referendum.

The consecutive holding of presidential elections followed by the election of deputies of the Mazhilis (the lower chamber of the Parliament) and maslikhats (local representative bodies) will allow focusing on the solution of urgent and strategic tasks on socio-economic development of the country. In other words, the accumulated rhythm of the country’s modernization will not be disturbed.

The growing geostrategic tensions and turbulence in the world economy are a strong factor in favor of holding early elections. The unpredictability of the dynamics of world processes multiplies the risks and challenges not only for individual states, but for entire regions.

Another central initiative of yesterday’s address is the head of state’s proposal to limit the presidential mandate to a single term of seven years without the right to re-election.

This proposal is a thoroughly considered decision, which, if approved by the Parliament, will determine the future of Kazakhstan’s political system.

In this case, the election of one person as President for only one seven-year term is a political innovation, which now has no precedent in the near and distant surrounding of Kazakhstan. The norm of a one-time presidency is primarily aimed at the long-term stabilization of the political system, eliminating the risks of power monopolization and strengthening the basic principles of democracy.

The initiative on a single presidential term is a logical progression of steps already taken to finally move away from the super-presidential model. These include the non-partisanship of the head of state, the ban on his relatives holding positions in government agencies and state-owned companies, and the redistribution of some presidential powers in favor of other institutions of power. The introduction of a single presidential term thus closes the process of institutionalizing a presidential republic with an optimal balance of power.

The initiative to hold early elections to the Mazhilis and maslikhats of all levels in the first half of next year also comes from the rationale of the political modernization program.

Elections in single-mandate districts under a mixed electoral system that is being implemented will become an important factor in improving political culture in the country and a powerful tool for articulating the interests of citizens at the local level.

The electoral legislation will soon work according to new rules. The registration procedure for political parties will be simplified, which is already contributing to the emergence of new parties, new faces in politics, and increased political competition. And this trend is irreversible, with the deepening of political modernization it will only grow. 

Renewal of representative bodies of power, new principles of Mazhilis and maslikhats formation are closely linked to the comprehensive transformation of the executive vertical – the government and akimats (administration). In the future, the government will include not only representatives of the party that won the most votes, but representatives of other parliamentary parties as well.

In general, all the political initiatives presented in the address comprehensively fill with real content the key formula of our nation-building “strong President – influential Parliament – accountable Government”. The new reform gives a start to the electoral cycle, which will allow a restart of the entire political system.

Kazakhstan will launch a new program called National Fund for Сhildren in 2024 that envisions allocating 50 percent of the National Fund’s annual investment income to support children, nearly the third of the country’s 19 million population, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev announced in his Sept. 1 state-of-the-nation address.

The funds will be directed to special savings accounts for children until 18, with no right to early withdrawal. The funds could then be used for housing and education purposes.

The National Fund is a governmental entity modeled on Norway’s Oil Fund to accumulate a share of the nation’s profits from oil exports. As of July, its assets reached US$53.3 billion.

Tokayev called it “extremely important” to announce the new program in 2022, which is designated as the Year of Children in Kazakhstan.

“We have enshrined in the basic law the key principle that land and natural resources belong to the people. This is not just a beautiful declaration, but the leitmotif of all reforms. Every family must receive a real return on using the country’s national wealth,” said Tokayev.

Another nation-wide initiative is to create new modern schools for 800,000 children by 2025 as part of the Comfortable School national project.

The move will help address the problem of schools with three shifts and those that require immediate repair work as annual population growth puts significant pressure on the country’s educational infrastructure.

President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called for an extraordinary presidential election this fall.

“A new trust mandate of the people is needed for the successful implementation of fundamental and comprehensive reforms on the way to creating a fair Kazakhstan,” Tokayev said during his State-of-the-Nation Address on September 1.

In addition, the President proposed major revisions to the number and length of presidential terms. “I suggest that the presidential term will be limited to seven years. However, re-election is not permitted,” he stated.

According to the President, the suggested novelty will significantly reduce the risks of power monopolization.

Tokayev also proposed to hold elections to the Kazakh Parliament and Maslikhats (local representative bodies) in the first half of 2023.

“We are building a fair Kazakhstan with open competition and equal opportunities for everyone,” said the President.

Tokayev focused on the importance of carrying out major political transformations in a transparent way.

The President said that public disclosure of the timing and sequence of the new electoral cycle is consistent with the principles of openness in decision-making.

“All these steps gradually fill our main formula “a strong President – an influential Parliament – an accountable Government” with real content,” he said.