Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia chiefly want to strengthen cooperation in area of culture and education and promote information technology development in the Baltic Sea region.

Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia chiefly want to strengthen cooperation in area of culture and education and promote information technology development in the Baltic Sea region, Latvian foreign minister said. Indulis Berzins Tuesday was talking to reporters following the meeting of the Baltic states foreign ministers and Nordic states cooperation ministers and their deputies in Riga. He believes the Baltic sea region may develop into one of the most important regions in Europe and even in the world in terms of IT development. The minister noted the five Nordic states have achieved high development in the area and Baltic states too have the possibility. The meeting Tuesday in Riga was joined by Latvian foreign minister, Lithuanian deputy foreign minister, Estonian Foreign ministry deputy state secretary as well as cooperation ministers and their representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden as well as representatives from the autonomous territories Greenland, the Aland Island and the Faeroes. The representative of Sweden reported to the meeting about Sweden's most important goals for the first half of 2001 when Sweden will be the presiding country of the European Union. The Baltic states representatives meanwhile devoted most attention to society integration issues, IT development and the EU enlargement.