This year the annual conference of the speakers of parliament of the NB8 countries will take place on 22 August in Riga, the capital of Latvia. The speakers of the parliaments of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden will meet to discuss current issues pertaining to regional cooperation.
The agenda of the meeting will focus on the issues that the eight countries have set as cooperation priorities: strengthening security in the region and supporting the Eastern Partnership of the European Union. This year the rotating task of coordinating the NB8 cooperation has been assumed by Latvia.
In the context of regional security, the speakers of parliament of the NB8 countries will discuss strengthening energy security, cybersecurity, combatting hybrid threats, as well as progress in the field of strategic communications.
As regards continued support for Eastern Partnership countries, discussions are to focus on the current situation in the region and the progress with reforms that these countries have achieved.
The speakers of parliament will also discuss other topical issues and challenges currently on the European agenda.
The participants of the conference will be: from Estonia – Eiki Nestor, President of the Riigikogu; Lithuania - Loreta Graužinienė, Speaker of the Seimas; Finland - Maria Lohela, Speaker of the Eduskunta; Denmark - Pia Kjærsgaard, Speaker of the Folketing; Iceland - Einar K. Gudfinnsson, Speaker of the Althingi; Norway - Olemic Thommessen, President of the Storting; Sweden - Tobias Billström, First Deputy Speaker of the Riksdag. The meeting will be chaired by Ināra Mūrniece, Speaker of the Saeima.
The NB8 format has facilitated active cooperation since the early 1990s and brings together five Nordic countries – Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden – and the three Baltic States – Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Prime ministers, parliamentarians, ministers, and other officials of the NB8 countries meet on a regular basis.
The meeting of the speakers of parliament of the Baltic and Nordic countries takes place once a year in one of the participating countries.
The meeting organised by the Saeima will take place at the National Library of Latvia.
Saeima Press Service