Nordic Council

Nordic Council Presidium discusses government responses to the proposal to update the Helsinki Treaty

Bryndís Haraldsdóttir, Nordic Council Theme Session 2025.

Photographer

Magnus Fröderberg/norden.org

At today’s meeting in Helsinki, the Presidium of the Nordic Council Presidium took stock of work on bringing the Helsinki Treaty up to date. In 2024, the Nordic Council unanimously approved a recommendation to the Nordic governments to update the Helsinki Treaty – the Nordic ‘constitution’ – as a means to forge closer Nordic co-operation and reflect contemporary reality.

In February, the governments issued a positive response to the Council’s decision and recommendation, marking an important milestone in the work to ensure the treaty reflects the challenges we face today and the potential for Nordic co-operation to address them. The governments have announced they will start the process by studying the basis and framework for an update.

The Finnish Minister for Co-operation, Anders Adlercreutz, attended the meeting of the Presidium.

“It's time to appoint an expert and team to complete the study of the legal implications by the end of the year," he said. The work has to be done this year because the Nordic Council requested that the governments present a concrete proposal for an update in 2026.

It is highly positive that the Nordic Council of Ministers has welcomed our decision and recommendation and that the governments envisage completing the groundwork in 2025. Together, the Nordic governments and parliamentarians can make sure that the Helsinki Treaty remains a strong and relevant basis for Nordic co-operation. It is a historic opportunity to modernise the basis on which we work together for the benefit of people throughout the Nordic Region.

Bryndís Haraldsdóttir, member of the Presidium.

Signed on 23 March 1962, the Helsinki Treaty has been updated seven times, most recently in 1996. A great deal has changed since then, and important topics such as the climate, nature and sustainability are only sporadically addressed in the current treaty, while defence, emergency preparedness, and digitalisation are notable by their absence.

The international framework for Nordic co-operation has also changed significantly since the treaty was signed. With the recent accession of Finland and Sweden, all of the Nordic countries are now members of NATO, which places new demands on their co-operation. The language in the treaty is also outdated and could do with being refreshed to reflect current political and societal realities.

The Nordic Council will continue to address the renewal of the Helsinki Treaty, including at its annual Session in October 2025. By then, it expects the governments will be closer to clarifying how they envisage the process of bringing the Nordic ‘constitution’ up to date.