Norway embassies in 82 countries. 60 countries maintain an embassy in Norway, all of them in the capital, Oslo. Norway is a founding member of the United Nations (UN), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Council of Europe and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). Norway issued applications for accession to the European Union (EU) and its predecessors in 1962, 1967 and 1992, respectively. While Denmark, Sweden and Finland obtained membership, the Norwegian electorate rejected the treaties of accession in referenda in 1972 and 1994. After the 1994 referendum, Norway maintained its membership in the European Economic Area (EEA), an
Democratic Republic of the Congo–Norway relations nations that Congo approached with a request for military aid, asking for help to build a navy. Norway declined the request, citing a shortage of the training expertise Congo was looking for. Norway gave the Congo NOK 40 million (US $15.7 million) in 2003. Vidar Helgesen, the Norwegian Secretary of State said: "In spite of some hopeful signs in the peace process and the establishment of a transitional government in the capital, Kinshasa, the humanitarian situation in the eastern part of the country is precarious." In 2004 all previous debt was forgiven. In 2007 the Secretary Generals of the five