Nordic Council of Ministers suspends all co-operation with Russia
The Nordic Council of Ministers is suspending its co-operation with Russia and Belarus. This decision has been made in response to Russia’s military attack on Ukraine.
(Originally published at Norden.org)
The Ministers for Nordic Co-operation condemn the unprovoked, unlawful, and illegitimate Russian invasion of Ukraine in the strongest possible terms. Russia’s acts of war constitute an attack on the European security order. The Nordic countries are united in their solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people.
The Nordic Council of Ministers has therefore decided to immediately suspend all co-operation with Russia and Belarus. The Ministers for Nordic Co-operation are united in this decision. This means that all programmes, projects, and activities in Russia and Belarus are suspended until further notice.
“Russia’s military attack on Ukraine renders it impossible to continue co-operation in the current circumstances. The Nordic Council of Ministers’ co-operation activities in Russia have been underway since 1995. These activities have resulted in hundreds of projects in areas such as health, the environment and climate, and journalism and media, as well as meetings between Nordic and Russian parliamentarians. The aim of this co-operation has always been to build trust, mutual understanding, and development in the region,” say the Ministers for Nordic Co-operation.
Despite several setbacks, the Nordic Council of Ministers has managed to maintain contact with Russia where others have been banned. The focus of the programmes has been on people-to-people co-operation, which has served as a valuable support for Russian civil society.
Together with the rest of the global community, the Nordic Council of Ministers is sending a clear message to the Russian government. The Ministers for Nordic Co-operation stress that this statement is aimed at the Russian government and not at the Russian people.