Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland denied independent membership in Nordic Council after Reykjavik meeting

This time, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland will not receive independent membership in the Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers. Instead, the annual meeting of the Nordic Council has approved a proposal from the presidency to establish a new working group tasked with further updating the Helsinki Agreement.

The presidency recommends that the Nordic Council urge the Nordic governments to choose a Nordic committee that will formulate concrete proposals for an updated version of the Helsinki Agreement, as noted at the beginning of the proposal accepted during the Nordic Council meeting in Reykjavik this morning.

One of the issues that the new working group will address is the status of the Faroe Islands, Greenland, and Åland. The proposal suggests that the group consider two different options.

It states that the participation in Nordic cooperation should be based on equality between the countries, and that the involvement of Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Åland in Nordic cooperation reflects the development of these self-governing regions, allowing flexibility to accommodate diversity and future growth.

Alternatively, the Nordic governments could explore how the Helsinki Agreement may be amended to facilitate enhanced participation for Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Åland in Nordic cooperation, taking into account the legal framework that governs the relationship between Denmark, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland, as well as Finland and Åland.

Further updates will be available in Breddanum at 10 a.m.