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Norway

Norwegian Royal Guards are dismissed over illegal drug use

A total of 30 royal guards have been dismissed from their roles in Norway after admitting to using illegal drugs. The allegations were first made following a private party over the summer where the Armed Forces were tipped off about the use of illegal substances amongst conscripts in the Royal Guard.

Five conscripts from His Majesty’s Guard admitted the use of drugs shortly thereafter.

The Royal Army was informed by the police about the party that was held around two weeks ago. In the wake of this, a further 25 conscripts from the Royal Guard have come forward and admitted to using illegal drugs while on leave. The 30 conscript soldiers have now been discharged meaning they have been removed from the Armed Forces and the Royal Guard.

In a statement, the commander of the Norwegian Royal Guard said: “I have no confidence in the 30 who admit to using illegal drugs. They are looked after in a thorough and good way. This is a case of women and men who have made a mistake. And that has a consequence, so now they are dismissed within one or two days after going through the necessary procedures. I do not want the person operating a heavy weapon next to me to have been intoxicated. We have not followed this up beyond the military court based on the legal assessments made by experts in the Armed Forces”.

There are no indications that the soldiers used drugs while in service. It is the first time such an incident has occurred in the Norwegian military. The Norwegian Royal Court has not commented the situation.

About author

Senior Europe Correspondent Oskar Aanmoen has a master in military and political history of the Nordic countries. He has written six books on historical subjects and more than 1.500 articles for Royal Central. He has also interview both Serbian and Norwegian royals. Aanmoen is based in Oslo, Norway.