Business leaders call for better cooperation

  • 2009-07-29
  • From wire reports
RIGA - The three Baltic States must cooperate, and create joint economic policies, instead of competing against one another, said president of holding company 'UPB,' Uldis Pilens, speaking with news daily Biznes&Baltija, reports news agency LETA.

As the economic crisis in the region deepens, captains of industry are taking the lead to find solutions. "We - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - have for too long seen one another as competitors," said Pilens, and urged the Baltic States to create a new and common economic policy, by coordinating activities in such areas as foreign policy, tax policy, tourism, infrastructure development, rail and air traffic, and in its ports and energy policies.

"The world sees us not as three small countries, but as one economic territory - the Baltic States," he noted, as he pointed out that more active cooperation among the neighbors would be a positive signal for everyone, including the International Monetary Fund.
"What are we doing? Developing unhealthy competition? No one will gain from these small victories. The sooner we implement a regional policy, the sooner financial investors will help us, those who have evaluated the Baltic region as stable and predictable," he added.