Speech by Christer Persson

Intervention by Ambassador Christer Persson, CSO Chair on behalf of the CBSS Presidency at the 15th Baltic Sea Parliamentary ConferenceMadame Chairman, Parliamentarians, ladies and gentlemen,It is with great pleasure I address this 15th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. I do so on behalf of the President of the Council of the Baltic Sea States, Foreign Minister Jan Eliasson, in my capacity as Chairman of the CBSS governing body, the Committee of Senior Officials. He would have liked to attend and address this Conference himself, but overlapping obligations, not least, rather foremost, the upcoming Swedish Parliamentary elections on September 17 have made this impossible.I would like to start by thanking Ms. Solveig Petursdottir, the President of Althingi for the hospitality, and the opportunity offered to us all to attend this conference here in Iceland, the place of the world’s oldest Parliament.Ladies and Gentlemen,Let me now briefly outline the priorities of the Swedish CBSS Presidency.Swedish prioritiesDear Parliamentarians,We look forward to your active support and co-operation regarding the implementation of the Swedish Presidency priorities and the activities.I have been informed that this is the first time Reykjavik hosts the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. Just a few months ago, also for the first time, Iceland hosted the VI:th Baltic Sea States Summit. Although the Summit is not a part of the CBSS organizational structure, it came to represent a successful closure of the Icelandic CBSS Presidency. It also meant that Sweden, in practical terms, took over the Presidency of the CBSS from Iceland although the formal transfer of the chairman’s gavel did not occur until the 1st of July. The Summit was also the first time the Heads of Government of the Baltic Sea region, or rather the CBSS countries, welcomed to their Summit the participation of the Chair of the BSPC Standing Committee, represented by Ms. Arja Alho. I want to stress that the invitation to attend the Summit constitutes a significant step forward in the co-operation between the governments of the BSR and the Parliaments there. It can and should also be seen as a successful result of the fruitful ongoing co-operation between the two official levels, and of course as a result of the open and transparent dialogue between the CBSS and BSPC during the last couple of years.At our annual consultations, and through the close and regular contacts between our respective Secretariats we have explored new possibilities options to find and enhance and intensify appropriate ways for enhanced co-operation. Your suggestion for a more formalized collaboration has been discussed several times in the CBSS Committee of Senior Officials meetings, without any successful outcome. No consensus on the issue of formalized co-operation has surfaced. However, in my mind, and in the mind of the Swedish CBSS Presidency, no formal document is required to reach a closer co-operation on the working group. I would like to underline that CBSS MS, so it has been clear to me from the various discussions in the CSO in which I have taken part, considers co-operation with parliamentarians important. Hence we are on the governmental side committed to improve the relations between us, and the parliamentary side of the Baltic Sea co-operation. Just two weeks ago, actually on the 24th of August, I met in Helsinki with the Chair of the BSPC Standing Committee, Ms. Arja Alho in order to try to find ways and means to do just that. My suggestion was that we, in addition to continue as before, should look for practical and concrete possibilities of co-operation. What I mean with that is that the different working-bodies of the CBSS and the BSPC should strive for closer co-operation, of course where it is constitutionally possible and in areas of mutual interest, such as the recent agreement on co-operation between the BSPC Working Group on Eutrophication and the respective CBSS structure – Baltic 21. Furthermore, the Swedish Presidency would like to invite the incoming Chair of the BSPC Standing Committee to a CSO meeting in the coming months.Having said this, I must again remind you of the consensus-principle that reigns within the CBSS. The meeting here today takes place two days before the first CBSS CSO meeting under my Chairmanship. This meant that I have not yet had the possibility to suggest, less reach the necessary consensus in the CBSS for this proposal. However, I am fairly certain that if the proposal can receive your support, my chances of convincing my fellow CSO colleagues would greatly improve.Friends,I should of course mention that the CBSS Committee of Senior Officials studied and took a note of resolution of the previous Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. We gave our comments during the annual consultations with the BSPC Extended Standing Committee. I can promise that the CSO will carefully study the final resolution also of this Conference.The culmination of Swedish CBSS Presidency will be the 14th CBSS Ministerial session in Malmö on 13 June 2007. It will gather Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the 11 Baltic Sea States and high level representation of the European Commission. This meeting will take stock and evaluate the results of this second Swedish CBSS-Presidency. It will also be an event where we hope to be able to set the course for the future. The Chair of the BSPC Standing Committee will, needless to say, be invited to the 14th CBSS Ministerial Session.The first time Sweden chaired the CBSS Council was in 1995/ 1996, at a rather early stage in the modern history of our multilateral co-operation around the Baltic Sea. Let me for the sake of good order, although it hardly is necessary, remind you that the CBSS was established in 1992 as a response to the geopolitical changes that took place in the Baltic Sea Region. Its task was initially top to intensify co-operation and co-ordination among the Baltic Sea States, support democratic development in the region and help prevent that new divisions between our countries saw the light of day. Today the Council of the Baltic Sea States is an overall political forum for all, irrespectively of in what field it takes place, practical regional, intergovernmental co-operation between all Baltic Sea States/CBSS MS. Consequently it is active in numerous fields of activity. Since its foundation, the Council has successfully adjusted itself to changing conditions and demonstrated success in a number of areas. Let me give you just a few, the most recent examples, the Joint Declaration on the Exchange of Air Radiation Monitoring Data and one that could be of interest for parliamentarians is the Study on Citizens’ Participation in the Baltic Sea Region, undertaken by the CBSS Working Group on Democratic Institutions. Finally, the CBSS EuroFaculty projects in the three Baltic countries and in Kaliningrad should no be omitted from this very short list.CBSS has, along with other regional bodies in the North of Europe been recognized as one of the key players for the elaboration and implementation of the new common Northern Dimension policy.. At present, the CBSS is involved in the discussion of this new Northern Dimension policy. I would like to mention just a few issues that have been underlined in these discussions:• CBSS can supply some of the means necessary to achieve the objectives of the Northern Dimension.• The implementation of the new policy should be built on the experience of regional and local actors, such as the CBSS and its co-operation network.In short, the role of the CBSS in the Northern Dimension policy could be described as the vertical link from the Baltic Sea Region to all the parties of the Northern Dimension. The CBSS is in a position to deliver an important regional input to the ongoing discussion, although not invited to take part in the ongoing consultations between, on the one hand the EU, and on the other the RF, Norway and Iceland. This is a challenge the CBSS has agreed collectively to take on and the Council will contribute with ideas and proposals in the interest of the Baltic Sea Region. In addition, the CBSS has agreed on the importance of parliamentary input to the discussion on the Northern Dimension beyond 2006. This is an input that must not be underestimated. We are therefore pleased and encouraged that participants of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference have taken an active interest in the Northern Dimension policy, as shown in Copenhagen in January of this year and reflected in the agenda for tomorrow’s discussions. Your input will be a welcome contribution.The CBSS will under the present Swedish leadership continue to review and evaluate organization and its structure to remain a flexible instrument that develops in accordance with the political demands of its members and brings an obvious added value in terms of both political direction and practical measures. Hence, the motto of the second Swedish CBSS Presidency for 2006/ 2007 has been formulated:“Co-operation to achieve common objectives, greater visibility, and concrete results in collaboration with other regional councils, structures and organizations, and with countries in the vicinity of the Baltic Sea States.”Thank you for your attention.