The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine held a meeting with representatives of the Advisory Group of the Northern Baltic Eight (NB8), Alar Streimann and Lykke Friis, who arrived in Kyiv to discuss EU integration reforms in the environmental sector, the ministry's press service reported.

According to the ministry's press release on Tuesday, Minister Ruslan Strilets discussed key EU integration reforms, developments in waste management, climate and water policies, prevention of industrial pollution, and biodiversity protection during the meeting.

"Our Section 27 is the most complex: we need to fully implement about 200 EU legal acts. I am confident that professional communication between the Ministry of Environment team and the representatives of the Advisory Group will provide a good foundation for preparing for negotiations," Strilets said, as quoted by the ministry's press service.

Streimann and Friis, in turn, shared their own experiences in implementing EU integration reforms and navigating the negotiation process in their countries, explaining how their experience can help Ukraine advance in the EU integration process.

The Ministry of Environment reported that Streimann served as the chief negotiator for Estonia's accession to the EU for six years and has extensive experience in defending national interests before EU member states.

The participants agreed to deepen cooperation for Ukraine's swift accession to the EU.

"I'm thankful to Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna for such an important initiative. I'm grateful to the Northern Baltic group for their support. It's an important journey that we need to complete as quickly and efficiently as possible," Strilets said, expressing his gratitude.

The minister reminded that this initiative was established during Sweden's presidency in NB8 and was presented in April 2024 by Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström in the presence of the ministers of the Northern Baltic countries. Its goal is to provide advisory support to Ukraine's delegation in the accession negotiations with the EU.

The Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) is an informal regional cooperation format that includes Denmark, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Estonia.