Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen told the Finnish Parliament that the goal is to reach a consensus with Sweden and Norway on the future of the Barents cooperation during 2024.
The Foreign Minister responded to a question raised by Member of Parliament for the Social Democratic Party, Seppo Eskelinen.
The future of Europe’s northernmost cross-border cooperation has been in jeopardy since March 2022, when the Barents Euro-Arctic Council froze all collaboration with Russia due to the aggressor’s full-scale war on Ukraine. Barents Euro-Arctic Council is the highest governing body of the Barents cooperation and is led by the member states foreign ministers.
The cooperation also includes Barents Regional Council, lead by the leaders of the nine northern member regions in Finland, Sweden and Norway. Läs artikel