A Message from the Managing Director

Dear Members & Partners –

For as beautiful as it is, Washington D.C. is an especially testy place these days. Perhaps it’s a function of arriving in from a Norwegian hygge environment, or maybe the pandemic has been especially tough on folks who spend a good portion of their careers in face-to-face settings. Many of the US Chamber, business, and Congressional representatives we recently met with there expressed that “this administration’s lacking trade agenda” continues to be a problem.

Of course, our friends at Department of Commerce and Department of State had different perspectives on Biden administration benchmarks. “Restoring US alliances, climate change action, and a manufacturing renaissance” were reported to be well under way – and currently at the core of this administration’s international economic directives.

NATO succession, support for Ukraine, Russia sanctions, and transatlantic data flows were also high on our agenda. A strong case for removing Norway from a peculiar US list of steel and aluminum tariff national security threat nations (including China, India, Russia, Switzerland, and Turkey) was also repeatedly made on Capitol Hill.

Jason Turflinger

(counterclockwise) Nordic AmCham roundtable with Congressmen Steny Hoyer (D-MD), Fred Upton (R-MI), Ambassadors Anniken Ramberg Krutnes (NO) and Lone Dencker Wisborg (DK) ; Nordic issues in focus with US Chamber President & CEO Suzanne Clark (photo: Ian Wagreich, US Chamber of Commerce); 2022 AGM & Transatlantic Business Assembly

Alas, back in Oslo, the annual US-Norway trade (ICE) talks are now upon us – bringing with them the hope of real progress being made on these tariffs, as well as Norway healthcare industry procurement and patient access delays, climate technology collaboration, bilateral investments, and a host of additional prospective trade wins.

With AmCham’s Board and staff recently renewed and reinvigorated by a return to in-person member engagements, advancing transatlantic business abounds on multiple AmCham fronts. Our new and reformatted 2022-23 Membership Guide will soon be released – keep an eye out in the coming weeks to learn more about all we do with and for you.

After a busy run up to the close of Q2 and summer break, our August member meeting schedule will be brisk. In Arendal (Aug. 18th), our focus will be on how we can best work together to accelerate healthcare innovation and research in Norway together with AbbVie, Cisco, and Microsoft. At Hauger Golf Club (Aug. 25th), we’ll host our 22nd annual AmCham Golf Tournament together with Oracle and PwC. At ONS in Stavanger (Aug. 29th), energy technology advancements will be front and center together with ABS, City of Houston, and our US Embassy partners.

With the impending arrival of US Ambassador-Designate Marc Nathanson, our important US government partnership in Norway is happily on the cusp of expanding. After being nominated in November, providing Committee on Foreign Relations testimony in April, and finally confirmed by the Senate in early May, we eagerly anticipate Mr. Nathanson’s energy, environment, trade and investment cooperation action and engagement. We fully expect HM King Harald to warmly accept his formal presentation for accreditation to Norway. AmCham will follow suit!