Written evidence submitted by Mr Anthony Heron (DIS0036)
The North Atlantic and the High North
As a freelance journalist I have worked for newspapers to cover the high north and relations between Scotland and the Nordics. I am currently looking in to self-funded research on the importance of north-sea collaboration.
2.2
consider the merits of establishing an intergovernmental body for North Sea cooperation
2.2.1
Relations between North Sea Nations have become increasingly complicated due to membership of different international organisations, placing any hopes of sub-regional focus on the shelf.
Even a quick look at the most prevalent areas such as fisheries, shipping, energy, and defence reveals that the region actually suffers from a lack of focused collaboration in policy-making. The will to do more, particularly on environmental issues, is there across the region although disunited and lacking a coherent joined-up approach.
According to a briefing paper by the Royal United Services Institute, as a major player in the North Sea, the UK’s disconnect from the EU’s culture of cooperative thinking risks it drifting away from Nations like France in terms of security (Lord Ricketts, 2018). The increasing frequency of reports that foreign airplanes are entering the region’s airspace necessitates a forum that could increase security diplomacy specific to the North Sea. It could in theory act much like the Nordic Defence Cooperation.
2.3 Developing deeper ties with the Nordic nations
2.3.1
In an interview I conducted with him, Bertel Haarder, who at the time was chairman of Denmark’s foreign affairs committee and is previous president of the Nordic Council, heavily alluded to the fact that more collaboration between the U.K. as a whole and the Nordic bloc was welcomed on issues.
Our discussion particularly focused on Scotland, and he felt that if there was a future where Scotland were to remain part of the EU and NATO then the security-cooperation between Scotland and the Nordics would specifically intensify. The specific point of interest was that he stated that if Scotland wished to formalise any relationship with the Nordics it would be seen as “parallel” to the Nordic-Baltic cooperation.
December 2022