ABSTRACT
There are many seas that surround Europe but there is only one sea that is completely surrounded by Europe – the Baltic Sea. The Baltic Sea Region (BSR) unites nine riparian states: the Nordic states of Denmark, Sweden and Finland, the Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, as well as Poland, Germany, and Russia that extends to the Baltic Sea at two different points: the greater St. Petersburg area in the mouth of the Gulf of Finland, and the Kaliningrad district in the south-eastern corner of the Baltic Sea proper. The ‘Baltic Sea’ region should not be confused with the ‘Baltic’ region, even though both terms are often used synonymously. However, in this chapter the term ‘Baltic’ will only be used to designate the combined territories of the three Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania at the eastern rim of the Baltic Sea, whereas the term ‘Baltic Sea region’ exceeds the Baltic lands to include the entire area around the Baltic Sea.
