Ms. Erna Solberg, Norway’s Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, hosted on 23 June 2004 a meeting in Bergen for Ministers and government officials responsible for asylum and migration matters in the five Nordic countries and Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. Representatives from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees were also present.

The meeting concluded the year-long Norwegian presidency of the Nordic Advisory Group for Refugee Issues (NSHF). NSHF is an informal forum where the five Nordic governments exchange experiences and views on asylum and migration issues. Earlier this year Ms. Solberg visited the Baltic states and invited them to a closer cooperation with the Nordic countries on these issues.

“This cooperation is very important both to the Nordic countries which are EU members and to Iceland and Norway which are not,” says Erna Solberg. “The Baltic countries are important partners to the Nordic countries, and we highly appreciate this opportunity to discuss current issues on the EU agenda.”

The Ministers reviewed their experiences with movement of labour following the EU/EEA enlargement on 1 May this year. They discussed future needs and possibilities for labour immigration. They also exchanged views on the challenges concerning border control and the Schengen cooperation. The experiences of the Baltic partners will be very important in this respect, also before the Baltic countries become part of the Schengen cooperation in the future. The Nordic countries welcome the active participation of the Baltic states in concrete projects within the Schengen cooperation.

The Ministers received with great interest a report on the possibilities for enhanced Nordic Schengen cooperation, and realised that there was a potential for increased efficiencies through practical cooperation.

The Ministers and government officials exchanged views on conditions for family reunification and challenges regarding integration of reunified family members and forced and pro forma marriages. The importance of family reunification in relation to other kinds of immigration and asylum applications was also discussed.

There are great challenges related to return and repatriation to Iraq and Kosovo. The Ministers exchanged views on their experiences with this issue, and discussed ways of facilitating returns and repatriation to these countries. The Nordic countries welcome the new head of the UN Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK), Mr. Søren Jessen-Petersen, and look forward a continued good cooperation with UNMIK.