In this edition, Happymon Jacob speaks to Norway’s ambassador on the size of India, the things she chooses not to say, and why, if made to choose, she would take freedom from poverty over freedom of speech.
| THE FILE Name May-Elin Stener Post Ambassador of Norway to India since August 2023; also accredited to Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives In service since 1995, in the first intake with a majority of women Trained as a lawyer Earlier days Norway’s UN delegation in Geneva, working on disarmament Roots a town 150 km north of Oslo; part of her childhood in Gdansk, Poland |
May-Elin Stener told me early on in our conversation that she is careful about what she says. Perhaps she wanted to manage expectations. We were drinking coffee at her residence, two of her colleagues with us, and she was right about herself. She is careful, occasionally choosing to keep her arms crossed across her chest.
