On 16 April 2020, Viktoras Pranckietis, Speaker of the Seimas, took part in the video conference with the Speakers of the NB8 Parliaments. The meeting was scheduled for 19 May in Helsinki, but the Conference of Speakers of Parliaments moved online owing to the threats posed by COVID-19.
During the conference chaired by Matti Vanhanen, Speaker of the Finnish Parliament, the Speakers of Parliaments discussed the measures taken to combat the spread of COVID-19.
‘Some issues, such as the return of our citizens from abroad, required good will and assistance from our neighbours. We appreciate that, faced with this challenge, we have worked together in a united manner,’ Mr Pranckietis said.
At the Conference, the Speakers of Parliaments of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland jointly agreed that the response to the COVID-19 pandemic should be based on human rights and that concurrently free and independent media should be protected and unrestricted access to information should be ensured.
The highest national officials agreed that the upcoming changes in Europe after the crisis offer a great opportunity for the Nordic and Baltic region to become a success story through sustainable economic growth and remarked the need for unity and timely use of both national and European financial instruments and political resources for the purpose.
