Political and business leaders of Baltic Sea countries began gathering in the northern German port of Hamburg Sunday for the annual Baltic Development Forum. Around 400 delegates are meeting until Tuesday under the meeting's title, "The Baltic Sea Region at a Crossroads - New Business or Business as Usual". Among issues to be discussed are regional cooperation following European Union expansion, the role of Russia in Europe and trade opportunities with east Asian countries. Among those expected for the conference are Lithuanian President Valdas Adamkus, Latvian Prime Minister Indulis Emsis, Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen and the E.U. commissioners Paavo Lipponen of Finland and Danuta Huebner of Poland.
