Ambassador Arne Walther
Director General, Ministry of
Foreign Affairs, Oslo, Norway
Ambassador Arne
Walther (born 1946) is Director General and Head of the Department for Trade Policy,
Natural Resources and International Environment Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of Norway.
His responsibilities include the WTO and OECD,
international energy and fisheries issues, the Polar regions and issues pertaining to
sustainable global development as well as international environment affairs.
He also holds the position of Norway’s Ambassador to
the International Energy Agency in Paris and is currently serving as Chairman of the
Governing Board of the IEA.
Previous positions:
1995-99
Ambassador to India, Bhutan and Nepal (resident in New Delhi) and ex officio Resident
Representative of NORAD, the Norwegian Agency for Development Co-operation. During this
period in addition Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh from 1995-96.
1989-94
Special Adviser on Energy Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador to the
IEA.
(Vice Chairman of the Governing Board of the IEA 1991-94
and Chairman of the IEA’s Committee on non-Member Countries 1992-4. Head of
Norway’s Delegation to the negotiations on the European Energy Charter 1991-4).
1987-89
Special Adviser on International Affairs, Office of Prime Minister Brundtland
1985-87
Head of Energy Affairs Division, MFA
1982-85
Board Director and Director for External Affairs, Norsk Agip (affiliate of the Italian
state oil company Agip), Oslo
1980-81
Political Adviser to Minister of Petroleum and Energy Gjerde and later Minister Johanson,
both Social Democratic Party.
1977-79
Senior Executive Officer, Political Department, MFA on secondment to Office of Prime
Minister Nordli as Secretary to the Minister for Nordic Affairs
1971-76
Various positions at Norwegian embassies in London and Moscow and in MFA (entered career
foreign service 1972).
Education:
- Fil.kand degree (Political Science and English, University
of Stockholm 1968, later extended to Economics, University of Lund)
- Military Language School (Russian), Oslo 1969-71
- London School of Economics (Graduate School) 1975-76
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