Northern Dimension

Solutions to environmental risks linked with energy issues, logistics and transport in the northern regions are identified in cooperation among the countries of the region. Photo: MEK-Image

The Northern Dimension (ND) is an instrument of cooperation between four equal partners, the European Union, Russia, Norway and Iceland. Geographically, the ND covers North-West Russia, the Baltic Sea and the Arctic regions, including the Barents region. The USA and Canada hold observer status in the ND.

The Northern Dimension policy aims to support stability, welfare and sustainable development in the region by means of practical cooperation. The ND is an instrument through which the European Union, Russia, Norway and Iceland cooperate in selected fields, such as the environment and nuclear safety or social welfare and health care issues. The ND also addresses questions that specifically concern the northern areas, such as the vulnerable Arctic environment and matters related to indigenous peoples.

The cooperation takes place through partnerships. The most concrete outcomes of the cooperation are the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership (NDEP) and the Northern Dimension Partnership in Public Health and Social Well-being (NDPHS). In addition, the Northern Dimension Partnership on Transport and Logistics (NDPTL) and the Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture (NDPC) have recently been established. Two new initiatives have also been developed, the Northern Dimension Institute (NDI), comprising a network of universities specialising in matters related to the Northern Dimension, and the Northern Dimension Business Council (NDBC) to create a platform for dialogue between companies and the public authorities.

The ND's operation is based on joint financing, which underlines cooperation between equal partners. Funds are received not only from the partnership countries but also from the EU's financial instruments and programmes, international financial institutions, regional actors and the private sector.     

The Northern Dimension policy was renewed during Finland's EU Presidency in 2006. As a result of the reform, the ND became a common policy of four equal partners (the EU, Russia, Norway and Iceland), and the key documents of the Northern Dimension, the Political Declaration and its Annex, the Policy Framework Document, were adopted.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs published a series of three brochures in autumn 2009, which provide information about Finland’s policy on the northern and arctic regions and Finland’s neighbouring area cooperation. Northern Dimension and Arctic Expertise in Finland are parts of this series. 

The Northern Dimension brochure

Arctic Expertise in Finland