New structures, changing identities: the concepts of the Baltic Sea region

Abstract

The accession of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland to the European Union (EU) has led to an increase in initiatives on Baltic Sea issues and a degree of enhanced confidence in moving towards solutions. While EU policies and instruments, and the provision of significant financial resources, have increased, one might still ask whether people across the Baltic Sea region are ready for the changes implied by the new Baltic strategy and comparable initiatives. Marko Lehti and David Smith have "tried to show that national thinking is by no means self-evident and that the Baltic can be comprehended as a trans-national space". Yet, how this position is articulated in the various societies warrants close investigation. This position is closely related to dominant identities and images within Baltic societies. How will the EU's innovative strategy and the resulting change of images impact upon the conceptual understandings of the Baltic Sea and region, including perhaps the search for a common identity as a successful and a pilot scheme?Since 2004, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland have gained more instruments and confidence in the search of solutions related to abiding Baltic Sea issues. This is one of those rare occasions looking at the history of the Baltic Sea area when so much depends not just on foreign policy directions, governmental institutions, or international organisations but on the readiness of societies to implement signed documents and strategies. With the entry into the European Union, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian and Polish societies become well involved in the creation of the common Baltic area. Baltic area studies programmes have appeared more commonly in universities, old and forgotten but at the same time very important infrastructure projects have been renewed; in addition, better cooperation in strengthening NGO sectors, possibilities to soak up knowledge about the main functions, principles and values in the EU have influence on the appearance and perception of a new regional Baltic/Northern identity. The European Union has a strong legislative influence on Asia Eur J (2010) 8:339-345