OSLO, Feb 4 (Reuters) – NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will be the next governor of the Central Bank of Norway, the Norwegian government announced on Friday, a nomination the opposition fears will weaken the independence of Norges Bank.
Although the position is open from March 1, Jens Stoltenberg said he would complete his term at NATO, which ends on September 30. Norges Bank said it expected the new governor to take office around December 1.
Jens Stoltenberg, 62, will be responsible for setting interest rates and managing financial stability, as well as overseeing the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund, which, with its $1.4 trillion in assets, is the largest sovereign wealth fund in the world. world.
“I will remain a member of the Labor Party but I will be politically neutral in my post as Governor of the Central Bank of Norway,” he assured.
He also added that he was prepared to make unpopular decisions, saying he would not comment on bank policy before taking office.
An economist by training and former leader of the Labor Party, Stoltenberg was Prime Minister in 2000-2001 and from 2005 to 2013 before becoming head of NATO the following year. He was also Minister of Finance and Energy.
His candidacy sparked a debate in Norway about whether he was the right candidate for the post.
His supporters say he has decades of leadership experience and the political clout to run the bank, drawing a parallel with the 2019 appointment of lawyer, former minister and IMF chief Christine Lagarde as President of the European Central Bank.
Critics say his appointment raises questions about the bank’s independence from the government, since Stoltenberg’s party currently rules Norway in coalition with the agrarian Center Party. (Report Terje Solsvik, with Nerijus Adomaitis in Oslo and Robin Emmott in Brussels; French version Federica Mileo, edited by Sophie Louet)