- Member of the Norwegian Parliament since 2001. Now chairs the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence
- Norway’s Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2017 to 2021 and Minister of Defence from 2013 to 2017
- Also chaired the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence from 2009 to 2013 and the Standing Committee on Education, Research and Church Affairs from 2005 to 2009
- Law degree from the University of Tromsø