NATO Membership Advantages for Investors & Businesses

On February 22nd, 2024 the Baltic American Chamber of Commerce (BACC), together with the Finnish American Chamber of Commerce (FACC), organized a panel discussion entitled NATO Membership Advantages for Investors and Businesses.

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have been members of NATO since 2004, and Finland joined it just last year. The event provided the opportunity to get up-to-the-minute, first-person viewpoints from the highest-ranking diplomats from Finland and the Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on the advantages of NATO membership for investors and businesses.

The panelists included: Ambassador Jarmo Sareva, Consul General of Finland; Vaclovas Šalkauskas, Consul General of Lithuania; Tarmo Punnik, Consul of Estonia; Silve Parviainen, Director of U.S. Business and Trade, Enterprise Estonia; and Reinis Sipols, Latvia’s Head of the Representative Office in the USA. They discussed how each of their respective countries entered NATO, how this journey was undertaken and what were the challenges faced by their countries; what business structures/paradigms for investors countries has established being a member of NATO. Topics also included the Defense Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) and a multinational venture capital fund to support innovation throughout the Alliance; as well as dual-use technologies (i.e., technologies that are focused on commercial markets and uses, but may also have defense and security applications), and how these technologies can benefit NATO member countries’ innovations and economic growth.

The panel was moderated by Sophia Murashkovsky, Esq., Ph.D.,  professor at Touro University.

Following the panel conversation, Ms. Jasmine Utter, General Manager, Region Americas of Scandinavian Airlines Systems (SAS) highlighted the role of the aviation industry in NATO nations’ economic growth and security.

The event was concluded with a commemorative address by Estonia’s Consul, Tarmo Punnik, on Estonia’s Independence Day, which is celebrated each year on February 24th.

Thank you to our host Watson Farley & Williams for spectacular accommodations and fabulous Hudson River views; to sponsors Scandinavian airline SAS and Valio, a brand leader in Finland and a major player in the international dairy ingredients market, who supplied  gifts to our speakers and guests who were then able to taste one of the world’s best cheese.