Development issues in the Arctic

The Nordic and Baltic countries meet with Russia and the EU, as well as representatives from the Arctic and Barents regions on Tuesday to discuss development issues in the High North.

The two-day meeting, hosted by the Norwegian Parliament, will be held in the Norwegian city of Tromsø (photo).

On the agenda are issues such as the pollution of the Baltic Sea, improvement of the Northern Axis transportation corridor linking Europe and Asia, as well as energy policy and other matters of common concern.

Politicians present include representatives of the Saami population and the indigenous peoples of the Arctic region.

The Northern Dimension Partnership includes four pillars: environmental issues, health and social issues, transport and culture.

Negotiations will take place in all four areas, resulting in policy recommendations for the relevant national governments of all the parties involved.

The first Northern Dimension Parliamentary Forum was hosted by the European Parliament in 2009. The Forum has been instituted to improve cooperation and development in Northern Europe and the Arctic.

(Press release)

Monday, 21 February 2011 08:00