In the first post-Cold War decade, Nordic states' policymakers were confronted by fundamental changes in their security environment - with Soviet dismemberment being pushed by, and leading to the renewed independence of the three Baltic states. This situation required the immediate concern and attention of Nordic states around the Baltic. New, emerging regional ties, dependencies and guarantees are important from a policy standpoint, and vital if we are to understand the construction of security relationships writ large. How were Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania viewed by top Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian and Danish foreign policymakers? How can we explain similarities and differences among Nordic perspectives of Baltic security? Rather than gauging these perspectives through the aggregate behavior of states, policymakers' pronouncements are the empirical foundation of this analysis, focusing on their 'diagnostic statements' in interviews, speeches and writings. Swedish and Finnish positions on the security of the Baltic states are found to differ in significant respects from Norwegian and Danish assessments; the former's proximity is an evident feature in diagnostic statements, and the simple but powerful explanatory role of geography is clear.