As part of To Vima’s Ambassadors Series, we sat down with Norwegian Ambassador Harriet E. Berg at the Norwegian Embassy in Athens to discuss her first months in Greece, the evolving bilateral relationship between the two countries, and the pressing geopolitical challenges facing Europe today.
Seven months into her posting in Athens, Ambassador Harriet E. Berg is clearly at home. “People are very welcoming,” she says warmly. “I like Athens — the dynamism here, combined with the history.” Her early travels have taken her as far as Patras for its famous carnival, an experience she describes as a revelation — not just for the spectacle itself, but for the depth of preparation and hospitality she encountered. It is precisely this kind of lived discovery that has reinforced her conviction that Greeks and Norwegians share more than geography could ever suggest. “We are outward-oriented. We are seafarers. We are risk-takers,” she reflects. “We are quite similar in the way that we are very direct.”
That shared maritime soul forms the bedrock of her ambassadorial priorities. Energy exploration and shipping sit at the top of her agenda, with green technologies and defence cooperation close behind. One area she highlights with particular enthusiasm is electric ferries — a field where Norwegian innovation could find fertile ground in Greece’s island-connected economy. She also points to a dimension of bilateral trade that rarely shows up in official statistics: Norwegian suppliers of maritime equipment often close deals in Athens with Greek shipowners, even if the goods are ultimately delivered to shipyards in South Korea or China.
On the EEA and Norway Grants for 2021–2028, Ambassador Berg explains that nearly 160 million euros will flow into Greek projects spanning green transition, business innovation, asylum systems and gender equality. “You don’t only have a money flow here,” she notes. “You actually have competence being shared” — citing concrete examples such as cooperation between the Athens and Oslo police forces on hate crime, and support for a new Greek Ombudsman office in Thessaloniki.
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is another promising frontier. Norwegian gas companies have been injecting captured CO₂ deep beneath the seabed for 25 years, and Greece — already holding one of only three European CCS licences — is well-positioned to exchange best practices with Oslo.
On Ukraine, the Ambassador’s position is unequivocal. “We have to support Ukraine until it is a free, sovereign and independent nation.” She believes the sanctions are beginning to bite, and that Russia must understand territorial conquest is no longer an acceptable way to resolve disputes. On the Middle East, Norway’s stance is equally firm: military action is not the answer, and a diplomatic solution remains the only viable path.
Finally, she turns to culture — and her eyes light up. The Norwegian Oscar-winning film Sentimental Values has already been seen by more than 50,000 Greeks in cinemas. “It’s an incredible tool,” she says. From ancient ties — the Greek explorer Pytheas reportedly sailed to Norway as early as 325 BC — to contemporary cinema and music, Ambassador Berg sees culture not as a soft add-on to diplomacy, but as its deepest foundation. “The bonds created that way are much stronger and create a much deeper relationship.”
