On Friday, 13 May, the Saeima hosted Baltic Assembly conference ‘Security in the Baltic Region: Current Developments and the Way Ahead’. “Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania need to step up the defence cooperation to strengthen the security of all three Baltic countries; therefore the Baltic Assembly (BA) is currently working toward a common regional framework for defence procurements, joint masters programme for region’s security services, and regular tactical training,” stressed Jānis Vucāns, BA President.

BA President opened the conference by emphasising the need for ever closer cooperation and coordinated response to current challenges faced by Europe. He also pointed out that, as one of the most pressing issues, security and defence have returned to the top of the agenda of Baltic parliamentary cooperation.

“Today we face a world that is more turbulent and threatening than ever. The crumbling order in the Middle East has spawned refugee flows and has given rise to potent non-state groups with the reach and power to not only destabilize countries in the region, but also carry out terrorist attacks in Europe. Russia’s continued aggression and assertiveness threatens the European security environment,” said Vucāns, urging the Baltics to intensify cooperation on security, defence and foreign policy.

BA President also indicated that the BA has prioritised efforts to consolidate regional military cooperation and intensify collaboration in the fields of cyber security and critical infrastructure protection. Baltic parliamentary cooperation has increased its focus on intensifying cooperation in strengthening the eastern border of the European Union, elaborating and implementing joint measures aimed at counter-acting Russian propaganda and increasing public awareness of disinformation campaigns launched by external forces.

High-level conference ‘Security in the Baltic Region: Current Developments and the Way Ahead’, hosted by the Saeima on 13 May, addresses issues related to the strengthening of media, deterring hybrid warfare, and changing strategies of NATO and the EU.

About the Baltic Assembly:
The Baltic Assembly is an interparliamentary cooperation organisation of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania established on 8 November 1991. Each national parliament of the Baltic States is represented in the Baltic Assembly by 12 to 20 members of parliament. It is a coordinating and consultative organisation which has a right to express its opinion to the national parliaments and governments of the Baltic States, as well as the Baltic Council of Ministers, in the form of resolutions, decisions, declarations and recommendations; it also has a right to request the above-mentioned bodies to provide information on cross-border issues that are high on the Baltic Assembly’s agenda.

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Saeima Press Service