West Nordic Council

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West Nordic Council
Logo of West Nordic Council
Logo
Map of member states
Map of member states
HeadquartersReykjavík, Iceland
Establishment
• Established
September 24, 1985; 38 years ago (1985-09-24) in Nuuk, Greenland

The West Nordic Council (Danish: Vestnordisk Råd, Greenlandic: Nunat Avannarliit Killiit Siunnersuisoqatigiiffiat, Faroese: Útnorðurráðið, Icelandic: Vestnorræna ráðið) is a cooperative forum for the parliaments and governments of Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and Iceland. It was initially founded in 1985 as the West Nordic Parliamentarian Council of Cooperation but the name was changed in 1997. The council is composed of six MPs from each nation appointed by their respective parliaments. The annual general meeting of the council rotates between the members and is its highest authority. A presidium of three members, including the council's president, oversees the organization of its work and activities.

The nations of the Council share a somewhat common recent history: Greenland and the Faroes are autonomous territories of Denmark and Iceland is a former Danish possession. They also share a similar economic base, all being dependent on fisheries. The council's main objectives are:

  • To promote West Nordic (North Atlantic) interests.
  • To be guardians of north Atlantic resources and North Atlantic culture and to help to promote West Nordic interests through the West Nordic governments – not least with regards to the serious issues of resource management, pollution, etc.
  • To follow up on the governments' West Nordic cooperation.
  • To work with the Nordic Council and to be the West Nordic link in Nordic cooperation.
  • To act as the parliamentary link for inter-West Nordic organisations, including Arctic parliamentary cooperation.[1]

The West Nordic Council is separate from the Nordic Council, although all of the members of the West Nordic Council are also members of the Nordic Council and there is some cooperation between the two.

General meetings and leadership[edit]

No. Location Year Elected president
1st Nuuk 1985 Jens K. Lyberth
2nd 1986 Páll Pétursson
3rd 1987 Hans Jacob Debes
4th 1988 Preben Lange
5th 1989 Friðjón Þórðarson
6th 1990 Karin Kjølbro
7th 1991 Jonathan Motzfeldt
8th 1992 Steingrímur J. Sigfússon
9th 1993 Lisbeth L. Petersen
10th 1994 Jonathan Motzfeldt
11th Qaqortoq 1995 Árni Johnsen
12th Vestmannaeyjar 1996 Lisbeth L. Petersen
13th Øravík 1997 Jonathan Motzfeldt
14th Ilulissat 1998 Ísólfur Gylfi Pálmason
15th Skeiðahreppur 1999 Jógvan Durhuus
16th Tórshavn 2000 Ole Lynge
17th Nuuk 2001 Hjálmar Árnason
18th Stykkishólmur 2002 Jógvan á Lakjuni
19th Eiði 2003 Jonathan Motzfeldt
20th Narsarsuaq 2004 Birgir Ármannsson
21st Ísafjörður 2005 Henrik Old
22nd Tórshavn 2006 Jonathan Motzfeldt
23rd Nuuk 2007 Karl V. Matthíasson
24th Grundarfjörður 2008 Kári P. Højgaard
25th Runavík and Tórshavn 2009 Josef Motzfeldt
26th Tasiilaq 2010 Ólína Þorvarðardóttir
27th Bifröst University 2011 Kári P. Højgaard
28th 2012 Josef Motzfeldt
29th 2013 Unnur Brá Konráðsdóttir
30th Vestmannaeyjar 2014 Bill Justinussen
31st Runavík 2015 Lars Emil Johansen
32nd 2016 Bryndís Haraldsdóttir
33rd 2017
34th 2018
35th 2019
36th 2020
37th 2021 Kim Kielsen
38th Nuuk 2022 Steinunn Þóra Árnadóttir
39th Reykjavík 2023 Jenis av Rana
40th 2024

See also[edit]

References[edit]

External links[edit]