The Nordic Countries and the New International Economic Order: Consensus and Disagreement within the Nordic Group

Abstract

Huldt, B. The Nordic Countries and the New International Economic Order: Consensus and Disagreement within the Nordic Group. Cooperation and Conflict, XIV, 1979, 149-157. The unity among the Nordic countries in the UN, as measured quantitatively by voting agreement rates, has been demonstrated in several studies. The Cold War conflict has been regarded as the major constraint upon Nordic unity, Finland being the country most often deviating from the group. Through the relative lack of great power conflict involved, the NIEO issues would appear to offer ideal ground for Nordic unity. The present paper discusses voting positions and official declarations made by the various Nordic UN delegations 1974- 77. The analysis suggests that there is apparent disagreement, Denmark now being the deviating group member. Membership of the European Community seems a decisive factor. In the future, however, other (national, perhaps, rather than international) factors may also become increasingly important. Growing difficulties in maintaining Nordic unity could also imply added urgency to demonstrate such unity - when and where it might be found. The ambiguity of such projections should be considered when trying a realistic approach to the concept of like-mindedness.