News

Ilulissat, Greenland28 August, 2002 Dear Colleagues,Ladies and Gentlemen,Let me start by thanking our host Jonathan Motzfeld, Prime Minister of Greenland, for his kind invitation to visit his island situated in the real northern dimension of the world. Also, I would like to thank Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Minister Bertel Haarder in particular for a very timely start of preparations for the future activities within the framework of the European Union Northern Dimension Initiative. To begin, I would like to re-emphasise that the EU Northern Dimension initiated by the Nordic countries almost five years ago has taken root and has become a solid factor of regional co-operation and integration in the north of Europe. But I will not go into the details of the Northern Dimension Action Plan adopted in Feira. I will rather speak on the experience gained during the past two years of implementing the goals set out in the Northern Dimension Initiative.First, the implementation of so wide a programme of activities as the Northern Dimension Initiative and the related Action Plan takes time. There are successes, maybe some failures or underestimation of difficulties but still this initiative has focused the European Union’s attention on its north-eastern part. This focus should be maintained in the future as well.Second, a smooth integration of the candidate countries from the region into the EU and active partnership relations with the Russian Federation are and should remain in the future as the two main objectives of the EU Northern Dimension Initiative. While the relations with Russia will continue to be a permanent external priority of an enlarged EU, successful admission of the new members at the beginning of 2004 will raise additional issues belonging to the sphere of the EU internal and external interests in this region. External EU borders will change significantly and, at some stage, the new Northern Dimension Action Plan should reflect our future activities regarding the other – eastern neighbours, specifically,Ukraine and Belarus.Third, the involvement of regional actors such as the Council of the Baltic Sea States, the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, the Arctic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers has been very successful and has helped a lot to respond to the specific needs the region, such as the List of the priorities and projects presented by the CBSS, Northern e-Dimension Action Plan, etc.Fourth, active participation of the European Commission has resulted in the establishment of the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership Support Fund. Taking this opportunity, I would like to congratulate all those taking active part in this endeavour which, I am sure, will result in effective environmental projects. Active participation of Russia in the field of the environment makes this co-operation of a special value for the bordering countries and for the whole region. This approach also gives some clues how to act efficiently in other sectors of the Northern Dimension, such as energy, ITC, transport, healthcare and many others.Fifth, questions of preparation and financing of projects have become an obstacle for the implementation of the ND Action Plan. The synchronisation of the EU funds PHARE, TACIS and INTERREG targeted to different groups of countries took a long time and absorbed a considerable amount of efforts, making implementation of some ideas hardly possible. This could be clearly seen during the implementation of Lithuanian – Russian Nida initiatives on co-operation with the Kaliningrad Oblast. Only a clear concept on financing of the Action Plan initiated and provided by the European Commission could help to avoid difficulties in the future. It doesn’t matter how many actors, including participating states, international financial institutions, funds or private sector, will take part in different activities, but the EU should define the basic principles, its role and level of participation. There is also a possibility to think about a separate budget line for the European North in the future budget of the EU as it has been envisaged for the implementation of the Mediterranean Action Plan. Sixth, it is important for the new Northern Dimension Action Plan to define priority fields for the future activities. Only clear objectives defined in a new Action Plan for the development of the region and consecutively developed programmes and projects could attract international financial institutions and private sector to be engaged in the Northern Dimension activities. The role of the EU, regional actors and participating states is very important in ensuring a synergy of EU, regional and national interests in this rapidly developing European region.In this context, I could say that the Prime Ministers of the Baltic States had underlined future priorities for the Baltic States in Visaginas, Lithuania, in June this year. It was stressed that the development of the infrastructure projects in our countries remains a fundamental goal in the context of the EU integration. It is necessary to implement the construction of pan-European roads and rails crossing our countries. Lithuania is also emphasising the importance of the establishment of a Common Baltic Electricity Market with its future connection to the Baltic Electricity Ring and to the European electricity market via Poland. Ladies and Gentlemen,Particular attention should be paid to infrastructure projects involving Kaliningrad Oblast. Due to its specific geographic location, the Kaliningrad region deserves special attention in the context of the Northern Dimension. Co-operation on Kaliningrad is most fitting for the Northern Dimension as it involves several countries. As an example, I can state the so-called “Nida initiative” of Lithuania and Russia regarding cross border co-operation between border regions of Lithuania and the Kaliningrad region. Significant headway in the development of three projects from the list elaborated in Nida has been made. They will be sufficiently developed to apply for EU PHARE funding at the end of this year. However, in order for these joint projects to be most effective, it is imperative that the Kaliningrad side also applies for funding from the counterpart TACIS fund. The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs became the beneficiary of the EU PHARE Programme’s project on “Developing a project pipeline for cross border co-operation between Lithuania and the Kaliningrad region” which will help significantly to establish a strategy on cross border co-operation between Lithuania and the Kaliningrad region. Over recent years, Lithuania has been working to make the Kaliningrad region be seen as a "window of opportunity" and model for a wider co-operation between Russia and the enlarging EU.Dear hosts and colleagues,Speaking on this beautiful island of sun and snow, it is impossible to avoid mentioning another window – the Arctic Window in the Northern Dimension. The great distances and harsh weather conditions in the Arctic part of our region require very specific, tailor-made solutions. The problems of preserving the culture of the indigenous populations and the future of the Arctic environment due to its impact to the world climate conditions, the sustainability of the utilisation of marine resources and extraction of raw materials, transportation particularities and the development of information and communication technologies in this part of the world request particular attention, careful approach and deserve a separate section within the Northern Dimension Action Plan. Thank you very much for your attention.