Oslo/Kinshasa - Two Norwegian men have been sentenced to death in the Democratic Republic of Congo for murdering their driver, according to Norwegian media reports.

The court in the capital Kinshasa also ordered both accused and the Norwegian state to pay the Congolese state 60 million dollars (41 million euros) in damages, reports said.

Norway's foreign minister Jonas Gahr Stre protested against the court's ruling which also found the men guilty of spying.

"We're against the death penalty as a matter of principle," he said. He confirmed that diplomats were working hard for the release of the two men.

Congolese authorities had assured him that the men would not be executed, he said.

The men Tjostolv Moland, 28, and Joshua French, 27, were working for a private security firm in Congo. They said that their driver was killed when their car was attacked by armed robbers.

They were arrested after attempting to flee and identified themselves as members of the Norwegian military. (dpa)