Finnish President Tarja Halonen took up the coming Baltic Sea Action Summit on her New Years Speech. The Presidents hopes that the new kind of summit will bring closer cooperation for Baltic Sea’s benefit. Quote from the President’s speech:

“Global problems also require local and regional action. We are striving in our own region to strengthen cooperation in environmental matters and particularly to improve the state of the Baltic Sea. Together with Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen and the Baltic Sea Action Group, I have invited a high-level Baltic Sea meeting to Helsinki on the 10th of February. We hope that this new type of a summit will bring closer cooperation among heads of state and government as well as representatives of business and civil society from all the countries in the Baltic Sea region.”

You can read the whole speech under this link.