On 14 September 2023, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a meeting of the directors of security policy departments from the Nordic countries and Baltic States (Nordic-Baltic Eight, NB8), who had gathered to discuss topical issues of regional security, NATO and the European Union.
Raimonds Oškalns, director of the Security Policy Department at the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasized: “Nordic and Baltic countries are linked not only by their geographic location and shared values, but also a common understanding of current security challenges. Finland’s NATO membership as well as Sweden’s upcoming accession to the Alliance offer an opportunity to significantly expand the Nordic-Baltic defence cooperation potential.”
At the meeting, special attention was paid to cooperation within NATO in preparations for next summer’s summit in Washington, as well as to the growing role of the EU in the field of security.
Another topic on the agenda was the need to strengthen support for Ukraine in the long term. The Nordic countries and Baltic States are among the most active supporters of Ukraine, making an invaluable contribution to the capabilities of the Ukrainian armed forces. All NB8 countries have joined the G7 joint declaration on long-term support for Ukraine, pledging to provide it with long-term political, military, economic and financial support.
Background information
The NB8 (Nordic–Baltic Eight) cooperation format comprises Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. This past January, Latvia took over coordination in the NB8 format. Latvia’s priorities in the NB8 coordination effort are related to the strengthening of a rules-based international order, military security and deterrence capabilities, as well as resilience.
