Dear Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Welcome to my part of Norway – even if there is no salt sea in the inner part of Finnmark, - where I come from - development and activities in the coastal areas are important not only for the coastal areas, but also for the area as a whole. This is also reflected in the list of participants at this conference.

In my speech I will focus on opportunities and challenges for developing Northern Europe in general, and the North Sea Basin and the Barents area in particular – But also the tools, which are available for realizing the potentials of this region. In this connection EUs Northern Dimension, The Northern Maritime Corridor(NMC) and Interreg are of particular importance.

Opportunities and challenges

Let me start with some of the main aims Norway have for development of the Barents region and the North Sea Basin.

Create new economic growth and give impulse to regional development

Strengthen the private sector

Strengthen the infrastructure for transportation and telecommunication in general

Develop efficient and sustainable maritime transport solutions connecting the North Sea basin with the Barents region in particular, through:

Promoting Short Sea Shipping

New concepts of seafood transport

Maritime transport concepts in the petroleum sector

Implementing and harmonising risk management strategies

The 21 ^st> century will witness a strong increase in the utilisation of natural resources in the north, in particular in petroleum energy developments in the Barents Euro-Arctic area. The exploitation of natural resources in the Northern regions gives rise to a number of challenges in fields like technology, infrastructure and transportation. The overall challenge is to carry out the development in a sustainable way, in particular in relation to the large and vulnerable marine resources of the Barents Sea and the North Sea. At the same time it is important to recognise the great opportunities that this development offers. The oil and gas sector, including all it’s side effects, is of interest in this context, not only for the regions most involved but also for manufacturing and supplying industries all over Europe. Access to the sea and the expected massive demand for transport in developing the new fields offer an opportunity to establish new transport routes, which will benefit existing industries like fisheries, mining, forestry etc.

Our aims will have to be achieved by cooperating with Russia - a good economic development in Northwest Russia will have a positive impact on the whole region. But also by engaging a wider group of actors like future and present member countries of the European Union, the EU itself and countries as far a way as Canada and the US.

Northern Dimension

The Northern Dimension aims at addressing the special regional development challenges of northern Europe. These include harsh climatic conditions, long distances, particularly wide living standard disparities, environmental challenges including problems with nuclear waste and waste water management, as well as insufficient transport and border crossing facilities. Northern Europe has a lot of potential and is rich with natural resources.

The Northern Dimension aims to intensify cross border cooperation between the EU and its neighbouring countries and regions in northern Europe. It aims to create security and stability in the region, as well as building a safe, clean and accessible environment for all people in the north. The Northern Dimension also has the objectives of addressing the problems related to uneven regional development and avoiding the emergence of new dividing lines as new countries join the Union.

In the coming years, with the enlargement of the Union to Poland and the Baltic States I’m sure that the importance of the Northern Dimension will increase. EU Member States will surround the Baltic Sea, and the EU’s common border with Russia will be extended. In this context, the focusing of support to the Northern Dimension area helps the enlargement process, and prepares the EU for the future, when its external border will have moved beyond the Baltic States.

The Northern Dimension covers a large geographical area: from Greenland to the west across to North West Russia, from the Norwegian, Barents and Kara Seas in the North to the Southern coast of the Baltic Sea. Non-EU countries that fall within its scope are Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Russian Federation, Poland, Norway and Iceland.

Norway attaches great importance to the Northern Dimension of EU policies. The Northern Dimension provides a broad framework for a common effort to develop the societies and economies of the countries in the area. The integration of Russia into the process of European co-operation and the extension of the zone of stability and welfare to the eastern part of our continent are fundamental aims of Norwegian foreign policy. We value the European Union’s continued commitment to these same objectives in the northernmost part of Europe.

Norway contributes to the Northern Dimension as part of its policy of active participation in European co-operation. Norway participates in several EU programmes, such as Interreg, and in a large number of projects carried out bilaterally or by regional organisations. While supporting the comprehensive approach of the Northern Dimension, we have found it expedient to focus our attention on certain sectors, such as the environment, nuclear safety, energy, health, information society and cross-border co-operation. Special attention is given to people-to-people co-operation, the interests of indigenous peoples and youth issues.

Regional development and cross-border co-operation are essential in order to reach the wider aims of the Northern Dimension. The next NDAP will reflect the enlargement of the European Union. In order to avoid the creation of new dividing lines in Europe, the extended border of the EU and Norway with Russia should become a symbol of intensified co-operation and integration. Cross border co-operation and regional development are a priority. In this respect, Norway has a particular interest in, and responsibility for, developments in the High North.

Local and regional authorities, with their extensive networks and experience of cross-border co-operation, are crucial partners in this respect. Norwegian local and regional authorities already have widespread contacts with their Russian counterparts through established regional bodies such as the Arctic Council, the Barents Council and the CBSS. This experience constitutes a valuable contribution to the further development of the Northern Dimension. Regional partners should be included in all thematic chapters where regional authorities have competence and capacity.

Last but not least we believe that the scope of the Northern Dimension should be broadened to allow indigenous peoples to take part in more arenas than is the case today. Emphasis should be placed on education, research and development and a business oriented perspective as a platform for indigenous peoples increased involvement.

Northern Maritime Corridor – the concept

The Northern Maritime Corridor is a maritime transport concept that aims at connecting the North Sea Basin with the industrial developments and transportation needs of The Barents Euro-Arctic Region. At an early stage of the project Norway presented the project to the EU-commision in Brussels and to local and federal authorities in Russia. In Norway it is a part of the National transportation plan and the strategic plan for our relationship with Russia The concept has been discussed in all the foras mentioned above. Seven different Ministries in Norway are involved in the project.

The Northern Maritime Corridor aims at strengthening the maritime dimension in international trade. The Corridor will enhance co-operation between maritime regions in Europe and create important and new business-relations. The Northern Maritime Corridor is in Russia regarded as the western “branch” of the Northern Sea route

In establishing transnational co-operation due attention should be paid to efficient and sustainable transport systems. The overall objective is to develop an efficient, sustainable and safe maritime corridor both within and between the North Sea and the Barents regions. This includes development of ports and other infrastructure to meet the demands for intermodal transports. Trans-national co-operation is needed to accomplish this. Major industries, transporters, ports and regional authorities in Russia, the North Sea countries, Iceland and Norway should unite in the further elaboration of this new concept and in the realization of the Corridor.

The basic idea behind the Northern Maritime Corridor (NMC), is to create a partnership between national and regional authorities and with the business society in order to exploit the resources of the north to the benefit of the northern regions as well as the more industrialised parts of Europe. In order to reach the goals of the Northern Dimension, and especially strengthening the economic development and the creation of new opportunities in the northernmost areas, it will be important that the maritime dimension of northern Europe is significantly improved. Increased focus on the Northern Maritime Corridor is the best answer to this calling.

The preliminary profile of the projects consists of two dimensions:

Firstly: A general and comprehensive part focusing on possibilities and constraints in developing a maritime corridor stretching from the North Sea basin to Northwest Russia, and through seminars and conferences highlighting the potential, and through transnational working-groups remove constraints and obstacles.

Secondly: A specific part where ports, companies etc. in the participating countries co-operate on issues of relevance for the overall development in international expert-groups.

NMC is a key project in the development of the northern areas, and will form a basis for further expansion and more committed co-operation among the partners. Referring to the guidelines for the new Action Plan of the Northern Dimension the NMC projects fits well into the key priorities:

Energy - where the Barents Region will become the main source of gas to Europe and a main supplier of oil to Europe and North America.

Transportation - where new shipping routes have to be developed in order to reduce the environmental problems and constraints in Central Europe (streets and roads).

The common objective for all the activities is to obtain a sustainable development taking into account the vulnerability of the area, the objectives for regional economic and social development and the capacity building of the North. Capacity building is an important part of circumpolar co-operation and it is important to include this in all activities.

Interreg

The most important tool to get concrete results out of the concept Northern Maritime Corridor are the two Interreg-programs Northern Periphery and North Sea.

The Northern Periphery programme Complement states that the overall objective is to:

“ find through transnational cooperation within the programme, creative ways to improve functionality and maximise the potentials of the Northern Periphery, whilst seeking to compensate for the permanent disadvantages represented by harsch climate, long distances, complicated topography and sparse population”.

The major industries in the regions of northern Europe are based on the exploitation of natural resources like fish, minerals, petroleum and timber as well as fish farming salmon, trout and new species. However, most of them find their main markets in the central and southern parts of Europe. The Northern Maritime Corridor is important in this context, connecting the resources of the north to the consumers of the south. The present situation with regard to freight transport represents major challenges for European society with regard to congestion on roads and emissions. Globalisation and increased trade will make this challenge even more urgent. Up to now Short Sea Shipping (SSS) has lost market share and is in many cases not competitive with road haulage. We must turn this around – more goods must be transported at sea !

A strengthened cooperation between the regions along the NMC will contribute to remove bottlenecks in the transport system. Increased total volumes and efficient set of hubs along the corridor will justify investments in infrastructure onshore and offshore. An increased use of containers in an intermodal system will increase the possibilities for an improved direction balance, making it possible for the traditional industries like aluminium, ferro-cilisium and fishing, and the new industries like petroleum and fish farming, to benefit mutually.

Furthermore, the NMC will link to East – West corridors in Europe, like the Mo I Rana – Umeaa, Trondheim Sundsvall – Wasa, and Humberside – Amsterdam – Baltic countries.

Conclusions

On the Norwegian side the petroleum development has started with the Snøhvit LNG energy plant and on the Russian side the Timan-Pechora oil and gas field is under development. This only increases the need for successful international co-operation. The Northern Dimension, Northern Maritime Corridor and the relevant Interreg programmes are all important tools in achieving this. In this context I will underline the importance of a strong involvement of national authorities in the Northern Maritime Corridor. We are dealing with issues of great national importance and where national policy has strong influence. An important success criteria for the Northern Maritime Corridor as a project is that it should influence national policies in all the participating countries. But as a wise man once said: The first and most important step toward success is the feeling that we can succeed. And I feel it , and I believe, that this feeling is present here today. Let’s call it the Barents spirit.

Thank you for your attention. !