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How Did the Nordic-Baltic Countrieshandle the First 978-9934-564-32-1 HOW DID THE NORDIC-BALTIC COUNTRIES HANDLE THE FIRST WAVE OF COVID-19? A STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS ANALYSIS Published by the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence ISBN: 978-9934-564-32-1 Principal Investigator & Editor: Prof.Neville Bolt Authors: Iselin Engebretsen, Elīna Lange-Ionatamishvili, Miranda Karin Michélsen Forsgren, Rakin Sayed Project manager: Elīna Lange-Ionatamišvili Design: Kārlis Ulmanis Riga, July 2021 NATO STRATCOM COE 11b Kalnciema Iela Riga LV1048, Latvia www.stratcomcoe.org Facebook/stratcomcoe Twitter: @stratcomcoe This publication does not represent the opinions or policies of NATO or NATO StratCom COE. © All rights reserved by the NATO StratCom COE. Reports may not be copied, reproduced, distributed or publicly displayed without reference to the NATO StratCom COE. The views expressed here do not represent the views of NATO. Table of contents: Introduction . 6 What is this Project? . 6 Why a Strategic Communications Lens? . 6 Methodology . 7 Which Key Areas are Explored? . 8 Which Strategic Communications Questions are Raised and Why? . 9 CHAPTER 1. The Nordic-Baltic Eight and Crisis Cooperation . 10 The Nordic-Baltic Format: Regional, EU, and NATO Cooperation . 10 Nordic-Baltic Cooperation in Times of Crisis . 12 CHAPTER 2. How the Nordic-Baltic Eight Responded to the First Wave of the Pandemic: Country Case Studies . 16 Sweden . 17 Estonia . 24 Finland . 34 Denmark . 42 Iceland . 50 Norway . 58 Latvia . 66 Lithuania . 74 Disinformation in the Baltics . 82 Conclusion . 85 Endnotes . 90 ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� 5 This publication captures key points of political debate which framed policy decisions during the first wave of the pandemic in the Nordic-Baltic region. INTRODUCTION What is this project? fall in national economic growth, and When the Covid-19 virus struck Europe in assumption of state debt so punitive to their 2020 with the full force of a pandemic, eight taxpayers. Any complete picture would also countries allied in the Nordic-Baltic region tell the story of how governments chose immediately faced a challenge to their to speak to their electorates, and how civil hard-won partnership. For three decades society would respond to unprecedented Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, measures imposed in peace time: curbing Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden had been individual freedoms, it may be assumed, building a common purpose. How would would elicit a consequent questioning of that friendship respond to the greatest trust between government and governed. health scare in a hundred years? This report aims to answer this question by looking All states communicate strategically. But at developments in the Nordic-Baltic Eight that is not to say they engage in Strategic (NB8) through a Strategic Communications Communications. Which is understood lens. as the shifting and shaping of significant discourses in societies. It aspires to change the way people think and behave; in Why a Strategic Communications lens? other words, to achieve a strategic effect. Inevitably, such an ambitious task requires To understand fully the pandemic that separating out diverse audiences and gripped these eight partner states is to paint honing particular approaches to appeal to a picture that goes beyond the number of those audiences’ attitudes and grievances. human lives lost or the rise in unemployment, In trying to achieve a strategic effect – in 6 ����������������������������������������������������������������������������� short, change – the strategic dimension The Nordic governments started from of the term Strategic Communications a strong position. The Nordic countries sees strategy as focused on the long term; (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, more specifically, its proponents play the Sweden) make up the world’s eleventh long game. However, the NB8 members in largest economy1. Their populations show early 2020 would find themselves facing high levels of trust in government structures a national crisis on a scale they had not and law enforcement, and demonstrate a experienced since the Second World War. high degree of confidence in their partner Uneven levels of preparedness, despite states.2 The same cannot be said of the repeated warnings from global health Baltic countries. By comparison, trust in officials that dated back to the early years government is low3 and their economies of this century, would suddenly demand are less prosperous.4 Consequently, the governments act in ways for which their Nordic countries spend above the European populations had not yet been prepared. By average on healthcare, whereas the Baltic the time the scale of the pandemic had been countries allocate significantly less. This recognised by scientists and politicians, context would influence the decisions of governments could be excused for having governments and the subsequent debate. resorted to short term reactions expressed The Baltic countries would find themselves through crisis communications. The latter, trapped between trying to maintain their however necessary, live in constant tension under-funded health systems throughout with long term communications. The aim, stricter lock-downs, while at the same after all in Strategic Communications, is to time fearing for the consequences for their ensure consistency and coherence between economies. the demands of today and the ambitions of tomorrow. How did the NB8 fare? Methodology The answer is not simple, especially when faced with the conundrum brought about This publication is written under the aegis of by the Covid-19 pandemic. From the outset, the NATO Strategic Communications Centre it was clear that the pandemic was as of Excellence and its multi-year project much political, economic, and social in its researching the Nordic-Baltic region. For effect as it was bio-medical in its nature. NATO, the Nordic-Baltic region is of growing Governments across the world have since importance to Europe’s changing security faced hard choices in balancing these order. Not all Nordic countries are members threats against the well-being of their of the Alliance, but NATO enjoys close citizens while retaining friendly relations cooperation too with partner nations Finland and long-term objectives in international and Sweden who are also contributing politics. partners of the Centre of Excellence. ���������������������������������������������������������������������������� 7 This report examines the communications countries as their primary source, and strategies of all members of the NB8 consulted other mainstream media, freely during the first six months of 2020. During available policy documents, new and those months, the Covid-19 virus reached existing legislation, as well as country Europe. And soon the first cases were subject matter experts using questionnaires reported in France (January-February), a and interviews. The objective has been to global pandemic was declared by the World crystalise dominant conversations around Health Organisation (11th March), and the the Covid-19 pandemic in each country, and first wave of Covid-19 infections swept to bring out aspects that underlined regional through a locked-down Europe (March-May) cooperation or revealed a certain distancing before countries gradually re-opened as between them. We trust this publication the first wave seemed to abate (June). As will offer constructive comparative data the Covid-19 virus continues to spread, from the region, and encourage further further time must elapse before more reflection on how best to balance Strategic meaningful analysis of the consequences of Communications with crisis management. the pandemic can be drawn. Nevertheless, by separating out one particular period encompassing the first wave in Europe, Which key areas are explored ? it is possible to single out the various approaches adopted by the NB8 to tackle The report looks at the different strategies the pandemic. Nordic-Baltic countries applied to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic from national, regional, This publication captures key points and international perspectives. The key of political debate which framed policy areas the report explores are: decisions during the first wave of the pandemic in the Nordic-Baltic region. It The national approach in each of the further analyses those developments eight member countries; through the lenses of persuasion and coercion, lives and livelihoods, linguistic The balance between persuasion choices, and societal responses. In and coercion in steering societies to some cases, the researchers witnessed complying with government measures; crisis management focused on immediate concerns; in others, Strategic The debates surrounding increased Communications, pursued with long-term support for lives and livelihoods. objectives in mind. As the case studies reveal, governments Our researchers have drawn on information reacted differently, drawing on the historical from public broadcasters of the eight consciousness and experience from 8 ����������������������������������������������������������������������������� previous crises, considering the shape of Was the region equipped to act the national economy and healthcare, as effectively and offer mutual support well as employing regional diplomacy. during a crisis? Did the member governments achieve a Which Strategic Communications desired behaviour change at home? questions are raised and why? Were they able to position their In the context of the Nordic-Baltic
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