Presidency

The CBSS Presidency coordinates the organisation’s activities, sets priorities, and facilitates cooperation among Member States during its annual term.

The Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) rotates annually among its Member States, from 1 July to 30 June. Each Presidency provides strategic direction for the CBSS during its term and helps ensure continuity across yearly transitions. While each CBSS Member State assumes the Presidency in turn, the European Union does not hold this position.

Leadership and responsibilities
  • The Presidency is led by the Foreign Minister of the designated country, who acts as the CBSS’s main representative and spokesperson for the year. 
  • At the working level, the Presidency is coordinated by the Chair of the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO), usually a senior official from the Presidency country’s ministry of foreign affairs. The Chair manages the CSO’s ongoing work, sets meeting agendas, and oversees the progress of CBSS projects in line with the strategic direction set by the Presidency and Council. The Chair ensures that the CBSS maintains a consistent focus on priorities throughout the Presidency’s term, facilitating communication between the Presidency, the CSO and Member States, and the Secretariat.
  • The Presidency is responsible for preparing and organising CBSS Council meetings, setting the agenda, and guiding discussions to support the CBSS’s long-term priorities.
  • The Presidency chairs the Committee of Senior Officials (CSO) meetings, leading discussions among senior representatives from each Member State on regional projects and coordination.
  • The work of the Presidency is supported by the CBSS Secretariat.
Rotation order

The Presidency rotates in the following order: Finland, Estonia, Poland, Iceland, Sweden, Latvia, Denmark, Lithuania, Norway, and Germany. Once each country has completed its term, the rotation begins again.

“CBSS Trio” format: Ensuring continuity

To maintain consistency in the CBSS’s work, the Presidency operates within a Trio format, which includes the previous (outgoing), current, and incoming presidencies. This structure enables the CBSS to sustain focus on ongoing initiatives and provides a smooth transition from one term to the next.