Goals and actions of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan reaffirmed

Baltic Sea Forum, held on 5-6 April 2013 in St. Petersburg, Russia, expressed support for the implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan to achieve a healthy status of the Baltic Sea.
[HELCOM press release]

Monika Stankiewicz, HELCOM Executive Secretary, spoke at the concluding Plenary Session about a recipe for achieving good environmental status of the Baltic Sea. Photo: Mikhail Durkin

Heads of Government and high-ranking representatives of the Baltic Sea States, the European Union, Norway and Iceland gathered at the Baltic Sea Forum alongside partners from the business world and NGOs to assess the progress made in achieving the common goal of preserving the Baltic Sea environment. Within this framework they also discussed new ways of strengthening cooperation across the Baltic Sea Region and assuring its sustainable development. The Forum is a continuation of the Baltic Sea Action Summit process (started in 2010 in Helsinki) in cooperation with the Baltic Sea Action Group and this year also in the context of Russian presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States. 

Dmitry Medvedev, Russian Prime Minister, pointed out that the economic process of improving our citizens’ living standards cannot proceed without environmental conservation. Photo: Mikhail Durkin.

In her speech, Ms Monika Stankiewicz, Executive Secretary of HELCOM, outlined ‘a positive but realistic’ scenario for the future of the Baltic Sea with HELCOM having extensive experience in the field of marine protection.

The Forum was hosted by the Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as part of the Year of the Environment in Russia.

The participants of the meeting stressed the key role of HELCOM in both the improvement of international cooperation across the Baltic Sea Region and in the promotion of the ecosystem approach. Moreover, the national leaders welcomed the forthcoming HELCOM Ministerial Meeting as a follow-up event to evaluate in detail the progress on the implementation of the BSAP and decide on further measures to save the Baltic Sea. The Meeting is organised under the Danish HELCOM Chairmanship and will take place in Copenhagen on 3 October this year.