Obama’s meeting with Nordic premiers divides international media

While the Nordic visit was swamped by the Washington media’s coverage of the ongoing presidential campaign, the many reactions in the Nordic Region were largely positive. The summit has been called historic, significant, and a clear expression of Obama’s appreciation of the Nordic model and the Nordic way of managing global challenges. The Russian media’s interpretation of the meeting is considerably more negative.

“The Obama administration clearly appreciates the straightforward communication with the Nordic countries, as well as their willingness to co-operate on, as well as their involvement in, several global issues, from climate change to terrorism and trade. Similarly, the White House sympathises with the Nordic countries’ gender equality and income equality perspective,” wrote the newspaper Dagens Nyheter the day after the summit.

Recognition of the Nordic Region’s combined power

The Nordic media also highlight the combined power of the Nordic Region in international affairs. “On their own, the Nordic countries are small and quite insignificant on an international scale, but together they command considerable power [...] 0.3 per cent of the world’s population live in the Nordic Region, but they represent nearly 2 per cent of the world’s GDP,” writes Norwegian newspaper Dagens Næringsliv.

Even the editorial of Finnish newspaper Helsingin Sanomat highlights the value in the countries acting together. “It is rare for President Barack Obama to devote almost an entire working day to a single topic. This is usually only in the case of an international crisis or a major domestic issue,” the paper said. “Nordic politicians should be honoured to have been chosen to attend a presidential dinner. Fewer than 20 countries have been invited to Obama’s home during his almost eight years in office,” wrote Upsala Nya Tidning on 13 May.

SVT Nyheter believes that through this meeting, Obama is constructing his presidential obituary: “For instance, during his time in the White House, Obama has implemented a new foreign policy in which co-operation with the Nordic countries on key matters such as climate change and the transition to green technology has played a clear role.”

Strong reactions from Russia

The Russian media generally interpret the summit as an attempt by the US to create a united front against Russia. In the final document of the meeting, Russia was urged to comply with international rules and agreements with regard to its military activities, and there was repeated support for Ukraine. Russian media headlines range from Obama convinces Nordic countries to support anti-Russian sanctions to Nordic countries convince Obama to keep anti-Russian sanctions.