Baltic parliamentary summit discusses Ukraine
The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) brings together parliamentarians from all the countries around the Baltic Sea every year. The focus for the meetings is usually environmental problems, cultural co-operation, green growth or social and health issues.
This year the meeting took place in Olsztyn in Poland and the crisis in Ukraine overshadowed the otherwise peaceful discussions. In particular, the delegates from Poland and the Baltic countries adopted a hard line, while the German delegates counselled moderation.
Dialogue and co-operation
The Nordic Council underlined the importance of dialogue and co-operation.
"We must respond to the conflict and work for dialogue rather than closed doors. Despite the crisis in Ukraine our common goal must be to avoid a new cold war," said the Nordic Council's President Karin Åstrøm from Sweden in her speech to the assembly.
"Especially this year, where we are celebrating 25 years of the end of the cold war, it is important to remember the importance of co-operation. As Nordic parliamentarians with a ballast of 200 years of peace, we, of all people, know the importance of peaceful relations across borders," emphasised Åstrøm.
Trust is part of the Nordic brand
Franz Thönnes from the German Bundestag, adopted the same line as the Nordic Council.
"A military solution for the Ukraine crisis is out of the question. We must work to de-escalate the conflict here and now, and the best foundation for peace is trust. We must promote trust," underlined Thönnes.
In his opening speech to the BSPC the Speaker of the Polish Senate, Bogdan Borusewicz, emphasised specifically the Nordic countries as models.
"The Nordic countries always rank at the top of international happiness surveys and this is due in particular to the high level of trust that exists in these countries," said Borusewicz.
"Trust leads to growth and prosperity, but if we look at the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, it will have the opposite effect and cripple economic progress in the Baltic Sea region. We do not have room for distrust in our region," he stressed.
See BSPC resolution.
Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference
The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference is an annual assembly of parliamentarians from the countries around the Baltic Sea, including several German and Russian states. The BSPC was established in 1991, precisely as a reaction to the end of the Cold War, and has since contributed to the development of the Baltic Sea Region through a number of initiatives and working groups.
