New Delhi: Norway is skeptical about a US sanctions waiver that permits India to continue buying oil from Russia amid the intensifying conflict in West Asia, Norwegian deputy foreign minister Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik has said, adding the conflict should be settled through diplomatic means as it is having “dire effects” on regional security and trade flows,. Norwegian deputy foreign minister Andreas Motzfeldt Kravik has said. (Agency). Kravik said in an interview with HT that most global problems cannot be discussed or resolved without participation of India, which has become more important as a trade and investment destination following the free trade agreement signed by the The European Free Trade Association (EFTA), which brings together Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland.. Q. The Iran-US war has come very close to India with the sinking of an Iranian ship. How does Europe and Norway view these developments?. A: The last thing the Middle East needed now is another war and this is a war between the US, the world’s most formidable military power, and Israel, a very robust military power, and Iran, also a powerhouse of military capabilities. This is extremely unfortunate. Our sympathies predominantly lie with the Iranian people. They have suffered for too long under a brutal repressive authoritarian regime. Whatever comes out of this war, we hope that finally they can be treated with dignity and have their human rights respected and that Iran can at least be put on a path towards democracy.. But we’ve also flagged concerns with regards to the war. We have said we don’t think the war was initiated by the US and Israel in a way that comports with the UN Charter. We have stated the way in which Iran has responded by going after third countries in an indiscriminate fashion, is extremely problematic from the standpoint of international law and should be condemned. On top of that, you have all these global ramifications in terms of upsetting markets, slowing down growth, energy prices going up. There are only downsides to this. We’re hoping we can reach a diplomatic solution at the earliest because this is having dire effects on so many topics.. Q. An issue being debated is the killing of a head of state without war being declared and some believe this further weakens the global rules-based order. Your thoughts?. A: Obviously, there are additional concerns that the war is spreading, and now with this [Iranian] vessel being hit – this just showcases how these things can get out of control. So we need to find a way back to the negotiation table. There’s a reason why this is front and centre in the UN Charter – that states have an obligation to try to resolve these disputes in a peaceful manner. This is something we think should be taken very seriously by both sides.. Q. How does Norway view the US providing a sanctions waiver to allow India to buy Russian oil, especially in the context of the war in Ukraine?. A: Our position on Russi