OSLO (dpa-AFX) – Norway’s state pension fund is withdrawing its investments from Russia. This was announced by the government in Oslo on Sunday. “The way the situation has developed, we believe that it is necessary for the pension fund to withdraw from Russia,” said Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum.
According to a report by the Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, the country’s pension fund had invested 25 billion Norwegian kroner (the equivalent of around 2.5 billion euros) in Russia at the turn of the year. He instructed the Norwegian central bank to immediately stop all investments in Russia and to withdraw the fund from the country, Vedum said.
The Norwegian Pension Fund is one of the largest sovereign wealth funds in the world. He invests the income from the country’s oil and gas business for the benefit of future generations.
In addition to withdrawing the fund, Oslo also wants to join the EU’s sanctions against Moscow and support Ukraine with money for humanitarian aid and military protective equipment, the government said in the evening./cmy/DP/stk