This is the third time in the past year that the body of Nordic presidents of parliament have met to discuss issues of importance to the region.

Joint Nordic support

The presidents of parliament devoted considerable attention to the situation in Russia and Ukraine during the meeting. With parliamentary elections in Ukraine now over and a new national assembly ready to convene in Kiev, Mr Thommessen put forward a proposal for a common Nordic policy to support the strengthening of democracy in the country. He spoke about this in his speech to the assembly.

“I believe that a coordinated effort will not only contribute positively to strengthening democratic development in Ukraine in particular, but also more generally,” the President of the Storting said.

The Nordic presidents of parliament backed Mr Thommessen’s proposal for a joint contribution, on the understanding that it was in line with the wishes of the Ukraine Parliament itself. Norway will be responsible for following up the practicalities of the initiative, with the intention that the President of the Storting will lead a delegation of Nordic and Baltic presidents of parliament on a visit to Ukraine in the spring of 2015.

The presidents of parliament also considered the question of adopting a joint Nordic approach at such inter-parliamentary forums as the Inter-Parliamentary Union conference in 2015. The idea would be that when 15 years of the Millennium Goals are to be summed up, the Nordic countries as a whole ought to focus on those goals that are furthest from being reached.

Reforms in the Nordic Council

The occasion of the meeting was the 66th Session of the Nordic Council at the Riksdag. Consequently, the reforms currently taking place in the Nordic Council were also a natural issue for debate. All the presidents of parliament underlined the importance of maintaining close Nordic ties. They also welcomed the ambition that the reforms would make the Nordic Council a more visible, efficient and relevant forum.

The wish of the presidents of parliament is to be kept informed about the progress and results of the reform process, not least with respect to the need for the reforms to be anchored nationally in the various parliaments.

The Nordic Council session continues for the rest of the week. The Nordic Council prizes were due to be awarded on Wednesday evening.