 | |
 Norway |  United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Norway, London | Embassy of the United Kingdom, Oslo |
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Norway–United Kingdom relations encompass the diplomatic, economic, and historical interactions between theKingdom of Norway and theUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Both countries established diplomatic relations on 6 November 1905.[1]
Both countries share common membership of the Atlantic Co-operation Pact,[2] theCouncil of Europe, theInternational Criminal Court, theJoint Expeditionary Force,NATO, theOECD, theOSCE, theUnited Nations, and theWorld Trade Organization. Bilaterally the two countries have aFree Trade Agreement,[3] a Green Partnership,[4] and a Strategic Partnership Agreement.[5]
Vikings of Norwegian stock particularly settled in certain areas of modern-dayScotland andNorthern England, and to this day many people in these areas carry surnames derived fromOld Norse words, such as Ainscough, or are of partial Norwegian descent.
In England, Norwegian Vikings began to arrive along the coast of the North West after being driven out of Ireland around the early tenth century. They are principally known for settling inThe Wirral andChester,[6] but evidence has strongly suggested that this expulsion also led to some settling in nearbyWest Derby Hundred (today split betweenGreater Manchester andMerseyside),Amounderness Hundred andLonsdale Hundred inLancashire. The Vikings were able to settle comfortably in these areas, as they were sparsely populated at that time.[7][8][9] Many place names in this area, such asNorth Meols,Scholes,[10]Skelmersdale[11] andGrimsargh[12] are of Old Norse origin, as are certain words inLancashire dialect from this area, such as "skrike".[13] TheCuerdale Hoard andSilverdale Hoard were both discovered within this area. Around the same time, Norwegian Vikings moved on to settle in the area that today isCumbria.[14]
In Scotland, the islands ofShetland andOrkney have longstanding historical and cultural connections with Norway. Most natives of Orkney and Shetland probably spokeNorn (North Germanic language related to dialects in Norway) as a first language until the late 16th and early-to-mid 17th centuries respectively.[15]
Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1905, afterNorwegian independence from Sweden. The UK has an embassy inOslo, and Norway has an embassy inLondon. Relations, however, go as far back as theViking Age whenNorse Vikings raided theBritish Isles, founding permanent settlements in the west ofEngland, theIsle of Man,the Hebrides inScotland and the islands ofOrkney andShetland. As a result, theEnglish language has been greatly influenced by theNorwegian language. This cultural bond has persisted to this day, resulting in a close cultural relationship between the two countries.
With Norway's complete independence from Sweden, the question arose as to aking for Norway. The choice of Prince Carl of Denmark, who became KingHaakon VII, was largely seen as being influenced by two unusual factors: Denmark being a smaller nation meant that theBalance of Power in Europe would not be upset by Norway's instant alliance with the native land of its new king, and Carl's wife,Maud, was a British princess, which would be expected to lead to a close relationship with the United Kingdom, which could give Norway some protection from German hegemony.
DuringWorld War I, Norway was neutral. However, due to largely favouring the British over the Germans, Norway came to be known asThe Neutral Ally.
DuringWorld War II, Norway wasinvaded andoccupied by Germany, forcing the Norwegian king and government to create a government-in-exile in London. The British military also helped train and organiseNorwegian commandos to attack Nazi installations in Norway. As a token of appreciation from theNorwegian people to the people of Britain, a Norwegian Christmas Tree is sent every year fromOslo toTrafalgar Square inLondon.[16]
Each year for the last sixty years,Newcastle upon Tyne has received aChristmas tree as a gift from the people ofBergen, one of Newcastle's twin cities. The impressive Norwegian spruce, standing at 45 feet tall, was personally felled byGunnar Bakke who has been the Mayor of Bergen since September 2007. Each year the tree is decorated in traditional Norwegian white lights and is a symbol of peace and goodwill.The people of Norway also send a tree to the town ofGreat Grimsby every Christmas since the end of World War II, for the past few years the tree has been selected by the people ofSortland.[17]
In January 2020, with the imminent departure of Britain from the European Union, Norway and the UK signed an exclusive Brexit agreement between the two countries that would aim to maintain existing guarantees for citizens of either.[18]
In April 2021, negotiations on a bilateral agreement on fishing rights failed to reach an agreement.[19][20]
In June 2021, the two countries signed a trade deal.[21]
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After the English town ofHarwich was badly affected by theNorth Sea Flood of 1953, in which several people were made homeless, the Norwegian Government responded by funding the building of some wooden houses in the town. Despite being considered temporary, the houses still stand in Harwich today.[22]
Norway and the U.K. sharemutual border boundary lines inAntarctica, and mutually recognise each other's claims as well as those ofAustralia,France andNew Zealand.
Both countries are full members ofNATO and of theCouncil of Europe. There are around 18,000Norwegians living in the United Kingdom and around 13,395British people living in Norway.[23]British people are one of the largest immigrant groups in many cities. The cities with the most Britons areOslo (2,535),Stavanger (1,542),Bergen (1,014),Bærum (716),Trondheim (360),Asker (307),Kristiansand (238),Drammen (144) andFredrikstad (111).[24]
Queen Elizabeth II made threestate visits to Norway during her reign, in 1955, 1981 and most recently in 2001 when she was received byKing Harald V.
On 4 January 1960, Norway and the United Kingdom became founding members of theEuropean Free Trade Association (EFTA); the UK left the EFTA to join theEuropean Economic Community (EEC) on 31 December 1972.[25][26]
From 1 July 1973 until 30 December 2020 trade between Norway and the UK was governed by theEuropean Union–Norway Trade Agreement, and through theEuropean single market through theEuropean Economic Area from 1 January 1994, while the United Kingdom was amember of theEuropean Union.[27]
Following thewithdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union,Iceland, Norway and the United Kingdom signed theIceland–Norway–United Kingdom Trade Agreement on 8 December 2020. The Iceland–Norway–United Kingdom Trade Agreement was acontinuity trade agreement, based on the EU free trade agreement, which entered into force on 1 January 2021 however was superseded by a modernised agreement.[28][29][30]
On 8 July 2021, Iceland,Liechtenstein, Norway and the United Kingdom signed a modernisedfree trade agreement; the agreement expanded to cover services in addition to goods.[31][32] Trade value between Iceland–Norway and the United Kingdom was worth £56,325 million in 2022.[33]
In June 2025, UK energy firmCentrica announced a £20 billion deal to import gas from Norwegian energy giantEquinor until 2035, deepening UK-Norway energy ties.[34]
TheRoyal Marines train annually in Norway, and are integrated into Norway's defence plans.[35] In March 2023, the UK opened a new military base in Norway, namedCamp Viking.[36] In August 2024, Norwegian Defence SecretaryBjørn Arild Gram described the UK as Norway's "closest and most important European Ally" and pledged two ships to join theUK Carrier Strike Group during its Pacific deployment in 2025.[37]
In December 2024,Prime MinisterJonas Gahr Støre andPrime MinisterKeir Starmer signed a Strategic Partnership between the two countries.[38]
Analyst and journalist Anthony Heron proposed that the UK and Norway should be central to the creation of a North Sea Defence Alliance (NSDA), aimed at enhancing regional security through closer defence collaboration.[39][40] The two countries are part of the UK-ledJoint Expeditionary Force, formed in 2018 with eight other Northern European nations, to respond to emerging crises in Northern Europe.
Recently, the two have collaborated extensively to provide intelligence and arms toUkraine duringRussia's invasion of that country in 2022.[41][42]
On August, 2025, the UK signed a £10bn deal with Norway, to supply the Norwegian navy with at least five Type‑26 anti submarine warfare frigates. According to the Ministry of Defence, the deal marks Britain's "biggest ever warship export deal by value".[43]
Alnwick,Northumberland and
Time,RogalandAberdeen,Aberdeenshire andStavanger,RogalandBarnstaple,Devon andHarstad,TromsBurntisland,Fife andFlekkefjord,AgderDunfermline,Fife andTrondheim,TrøndelagLerwick,Shetland andMåløy,VestlandLetchworth Garden City,Hertfordshire andKristiansand,AgderNewcastle,Tyne and Wear andBergen,VestlandOrkney andHordaland countyPeterhead,Aberdeenshire andÅlesund,Møre og Romsdal
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