VI Baltic Sea Conference

It is an international conference during which present-day political and economic problems are discussed.

Particular attention is given to the international guests from the European Union and its institutions, from the Baltic littoral states and the twin cities of the Hanseatic City of Rostock. The international guests and the discussed subjects have made the Baltic Sea Conference an event of Europe-wide

importance. The Herder Association wants to bring together renowned representatives from politics, economy, science and education in order to offer them a platform for discussing current subjects. This Association, a non profit organisation supported by the federal state and the city of Rostock, is the main organizer of the OSTSEEFORUM that has taken place since 2000 always in the eve of the Hanse Sail. This year VI Baltic Sea Conference focused on the subject: "Quo vadis Balticum? The role of the Baltic States in the BSR and the co-operation with Mecklenburg-Vorpommern". It was supported by the speaker of the state parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Ms Sylvia Bretschneider and by the mayor of the Hanseatic city of Rostock Mr Roland Methling.

Mrs Bretschneider explained to over one hundred guests how the state parliament of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern supports the development of co-operation in the Baltic Sea area by means of numerous activities. She also underlined the growing importance of the youth meetings in the Baltic Sea states in order to lay the foundations for future co-operation projects.

High-ranking representatives from the three Baltic States took stock of the current situation of their countries one year after their accession to the EU. Meelis Ojassoo, Councillor of the Estonian Embassy in Germany, Dr. Martinš Virsis, Ambassador of the Republic of Latvia in Germany and Prof. Dr. Vytautas Landsbergis, Lithuanian member of the European Parliament made speeches on their countries. Additonally, Mr Stefan Forester, Vice head of the representation of the European Commission in Germany, Dr. Roland Machner, representing the Baltic Sea Forum Hamburg, and Mr Christoph Flügge from the Senate of Berlin made speeches that were of great interest to the listeners. The plenary discussion, chaired by Prof. Dr. Martin Benkenstein, helped to go into the subject of the conference in greater detail including the participants' opinions and questions.

At the end of the conference the chairwoman of the Herder Association, Dr. Ines Nagijew, announced that the VII Baltic Sea Conference in 2006 will focus on Mecklenburg-Vorpommern's growing importance as health care region and corresponding opportunities for co operation in the Baltic Sea Region.