Baltic Assembly presidency moves on from Estonia to Lithuania

Take note – story published 3 years ago

On November 6, politicians from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia participate digitally in the 39th session of the Baltic Assembly and the 26th Baltic Council.

An overview of the achievements of Estonia’s presidency is being presented and the Resolution of the Session will be adopted. At the end of the session, Estonia will hand over the rotating presidency to Lithuania, and new President of the BA will be elected.

"It is important to think about how to overcome the crisis caused by the pandemic. Economic recovery requires purposeful work, also on the scale of the entire Baltic region,” said the Speaker of the Saeima Ināra Mūrniece, addressing deputies remotely at the opening of the 39th session of the Digital Baltic Assembly (BA).

The Speaker of the Saeima emphasized the need to wisely invest the available European Union (EU) financial resources in future-oriented regional projects. 

39th Digital Baltic Assembly
39th Digital Baltic Assembly

"We, as parliamentarians, must closely monitor the implementation of ambitious infrastructure projects in the Baltic region, which strengthen the energy security and connectivity of transport networks in the Baltic States," Synchronization of the Baltic electricity grid with European energy systems and the implementation of the Rail Baltica project were both on her list of projects to monitor and encourage.

" At a time when the COVID-19 virus is prevalent in our region, elsewhere in Europe and the world, we do not have a higher priority than public health and safety,” said the Speaker of the Saeima, thanking Baltic physicians and all health professionals for their selfless work. 

"At this time of crisis, we are convinced that the close cooperation of Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian health industry experts is vital to jointly protect public health," said Mūrniece.

Speaking about the situation in Belarus, Mūrniece emphasized that the Baltic States were the first in the EU to introduce sanctions against Belarusian officials responsible for violence against peaceful protesters and falsification of election results. "We continue to coordinate our positions on Belarus at the level of the European Union as well. Our support for Belarusian civil society and the independent media must not be allowed to weaken. Our help is needed now,” said the Speaker of the Saeima.

Henn Põlluaas, President  of the Estonian Riigikogu, and Viktoras Pranckietis, Speaker of the Lithuanian Seimas, are also participating in the digital BA session.

The Baltic Assembly is a co-operation institution of the Latvian, Estonian and Lithuanian parliaments, established on November 8, 1991. Each of the Baltic parliaments is represented in the Assembly by 12-16 members. The Assembly is a coordinating and consultative body.

Henn Põlluaas in his address said: “The [COVID] crisis will not resolve itself and we must stand firm and vigilant in the face of adversity. It is up to all of us to provide adequate joint response to tackle acute issues by building strong alliances, developing regional cooperation and nurturing trilateral and multilateral relations.”

At the end of the Session, Estonia will hand over the presidency of the BA to Lithuania.

The Foresight Centre of the Riigikogu, LV PEAK of the University of Latvia and the Government Strategic Analysis Centre (STRATA) of Lithuania carried out a joint study “A comparative review of socio-economic implications of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) in the Baltic States”. The report of the study will be presented at the BA Session.

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