ABSTRACT
The Baltic Sea is another semi-closed sea, located in Northern Europe. The countries and people sharing its shore also share a long history of cooperation. The main issues facing the Baltic Sea are related to pollution from land-based industrial and agricultural activities and sea-based transport and offshore activities, as well as wastewater treatment, waste dumping, spill response, ports, coastal management and biodiversity. All countries that share the Baltic Sea are high-income, apart from the Russian Federation, which is upper-middle income. The political regimes are stable in the western and northern side of the Baltic Sea. The rest are former members of the Eastern Bloc that experienced a rapid transition towards democracy and free-market conditions. Within the EU, Germany, Scandinavian countries and the Baltic states tend to form a grouping of member states that is frequently aligned in its positions.
