As the world changes, so must we.

For the first time in three decades, the Helsinki Treaty – the Nordic constitution – is being revised. It was written in a time when the Nordics were imagined as friendly neighbours with shared values and open borders – a time when modest intergovernmentalism was enough. That framing has endured for decades.

But the world has changed. And the region has changed with it.

Russian aggression continues and the United States turns inward – threatening even to annex Nordic territory. Multilateralism is under pressure and democratic norms under threat. Great-power rivalry has returned and the Arctic, our backyard, is becoming a theatre of domination and resource competition.

At the same time, a new sense of we-ness is gently emerging in the region. A new sense of we-ness that is rooted in our shared history, our shared culture of democratic integrity and trust, and our shared concern for the normative direction of the world.

We, the signatories of this letter, believe that revision of the Helsinki Treaty presents a rare opportunity to ask: What is the future of Norden?

Do we remain as we are – friends, neighbours, partners? Or do we begin to move towards a strategic alliance, a geopolitical bloc – a united Norden? 

We, the signatories of this letter, believe that this conversation should not take place merely behind technocratic walls. Most people are not even aware that the Helsinki Treaty exists – let alone that it is being revised. Yet it shapes the institutional foundations of our region. 

We believe this conversation belongs not only in parliaments, but also in editorial pages, boardrooms, universities – and dinner tables. It concerns all of us, and it must include all of us.

We call for a region-wide conversation about the future of Nordic cooperation. 

Let this be the beginning of that conversation.
Aurora Boreālis Lux.