HELSINKI, November 24 (RIA Novosti) - Russian, EU, Norwegian, and Icelandic leaders have met on the sidelines of the Russia-EU summit in Helsinki to discuss a cross-border and external policy initiative, the Northern Dimension, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported Friday.
The Northern Dimension aims to address the specific regional development challenges of northern Europe. These include cold climatic conditions, long distances, environmental challenges including nuclear waste disposal and waste water management, and insufficient transport and border crossing facilities.
The Russian side was represented by President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Economic Development and Trade Minister German Gref, and Transportation Minister Igor Levitin.
Representing the EU at the meeting were Finnish President Tarja Halonen, Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, and EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana.
Norway and Iceland were represented by their prime ministers, Jens Stoltenberg and Geir Haarde, respectively.
The Northern Dimension initiative was proposed by Finland in 1997.
In the external and cross-border policies area, it reflects the EU and Nordic countries' relations with Russia, particularly northwest Russia, in the Baltic and Arctic Sea regions.
