| Summary: | The Nordic and the Baltic countries are closely interlinked via trade, investment, people mobility, and banking. Because of this integration, as well political, cultural and historical ties, they are sometimes referred to as the Nordic-Baltic region. All the eight countries in this group have pursued some form of integration with the European Union (EU) and all of them are Schengen member states. But can these small countries as a group cooperate more closely and perhaps exercise more collective authority in Europe? The Nordic countries and the Baltic States have cooperated successfully in the Bretton Woods institution, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and exercise more authority there because of their common approach. The objective of the article is to access if the Nordic and the Baltic States can exercise more influence in the European integration if they act collectively. The paper finds that when it comes to European integration the lack of common approach complicates their cooperation. Within this group of countries there are hardcore EU and euro area member states (the Baltics and Finland), EU members (Denmark and Sweden) and EU outsiders (Iceland and Norway). The economic and social policies of the Baltics versus the Nordics also differ sharply. Common pathways for the future cooperation in Europe may be hard to find. European integration, small states, regional cooperation, Nordic and Baltic countries.
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