Open Days – European Week of Regions and Cities - Brussels, 6-9 October 2008

8 October 2008

Round Table The Black Sea between cooperation and conflict?

Speech by President Yavuz Mildon, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe

Ministers,

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

When the guns of the Balkan wars went silent, when we succeeded in “freezing” hot conflicts in Europe, there was a deep sigh of relief. Democratic values, respect for human rights and the rule of civilised law seemed to have triumphed over the law of the jungles, the Machiavellian world of political ambition preying on human dignity, the world where “might makes right”.

Back then, in the early ‘90s, South-East Europe and South Caucasus were the two regions ravaged by conflict, but it was South-East Europe, largely the former Yugoslavia, which caught most of the public eye with the atrocities committed there. Peace was brokered, and international organisations – the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the European Union and OSCE – responded quickly to engage the region into their orbit. Yet, it was the Black Sea basin, the basin where South-East Europe meets South Caucasus and the “political” East of our continent, which was left to harbour four “frozen” conflicts – Abkhazia, Nagorno-Karabakh, South Ossetia and Transnistria.

One of those conflicts has just exploded into armed hostilities, reminding us that “frozen” conflicts cannot remain cold forever and need a comprehensive, negotiated and peaceful settlement. Must we allow others to fester until they erupt into “hot” confrontation, or counter ethnic divide with interaction and dialogue between communities, transcending national borders? Transfrontier cooperation between cities and regions, which we are seeking to build and for which the Black Sea basin offers an enormous potential, can serve as a sound alternative to conflict between states, and regional autonomy, with panoply of existing flexible models, as a counterbalance to separatism.

This is the firm conviction of the Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, which draws its experience from initiatives launched in South-East Europe after the Balkan wars. First, the Congress set up local democracy agencies, LDAs, to restore trust and build confidence between war-torn communities through concrete projects on the ground, involving local authorities. This endeavour proved so successful that the network of LDAs expanded into South Caucasus, by opening its 12^th agency in Kutaisi, Georgia, and established the Association of Local Democracy Agencies, ALDA.

Another Congress’ initiative was to bring together associations of local authorities in South-East European countries into a cooperation network, which is now operating under the name NALAS, Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe. Last but not least, the Adriatic Euroregion was established to coordinate cooperation at local and regional level around the Adriatic Sea, linking communities from both member and non-member countries of the European Union.  

Applying this experience to the Black Sea region, creating a network of communities with shared interest in addressing common problems would certainly influence their choice between cooperation and conflict. There is a fertile ground for it: on the Black Sea shores rest historical traditions of enormous length – traditions of commercial and cultural exchanges, traditions of co-existence of civilisations and religions, traditions of discovery and exploration. A crossroads of Europe and Asia and thus of major political and economic interests, the Black Sea region has been throughout its history a hub for migratory flows and economic endeavours, but also a chessboard for geopolitical games and territorial conquest, representing both great potential for cooperation to be explored, and a source of tension and conflict. Rich in energy resources, this is also a region of important transit routes for energy supplies, which is an asset fraught with potential rivalry – much as is its ethnic diversity, a source of both strength and strife. To boot, this is a region which has been confronted with ecological fragility, environmental problems, and challenges of illegal migration and organised crime. 

The Council of Europe Congress has already a foot on the ground in the Black Sea basin, having set up a Local Democracy Agency in Kutaisi, and having helped to negotiate the status for Gagauzia in Moldova and to create national associations of local authorities in Georgia and in Azerbaijan. Finally, on 26 September 2008, the Congress launched the Black Sea Euroregion, BSER, at a conference in Varna, Bulgaria, which will serve as a cooperation framework and a launching pad for multilateral projects and initiatives between regions and municipalities, using also existing national, European and international financial mechanisms. The new Euroregion will complement the intergovernmental activities carried out by the Organisation for the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, BSEC. Fourteen municipalities have already signed the Constituent Act of BSER, which is open to local and regional authorities from Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine.

Another way of defusing tensions and settling territorial questions, which are very present on the political agenda of the Black Sea region, is using regional autonomy as an option for a negotiated solution. There is a large variety of models existing in Europe, which are brought together in the European Charter of Regional Democracy, adopted by the Congress. Apart from being the first legal text laying down the tenets of regional democracy, the Charter reaffirms respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity as one of its main principles, and we in the Congress are convinced that it can serve as an inspiration for resolving questions relating to territories. The recent war between Georgia and Russia was set off exactly because of unresolved territorial issues, and we strongly believe that alternatives of peaceful settlement, with a possible broad autonomy at its basis, were not exhausted in the case of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Autonomous status may open the way for a comprehensive solution, of which the status of Gagauzia in the Republic of Moldova is a good example.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Ancient Greek seafarers knew the Black Sea under the name Pontos Euxeinos – “hospitable sea”. This image of the Black Sea, which is friendly and accommodating, lies at the heart of our ambitions and aspirations – those of building a space for cooperation between our communities, between cities and regions bordering on or linked to the Black Sea within its vast basin.

We in the Congress strongly believe that more can and must be done to turn the Black Sea region into an area of peace and stability, and the success of post-war South-East Europe shows us that this is a goal which is reachable. It is in this sprit that the Congress is holding this round table, here in Brussels, during the European Week of Regions and Cities organised by our partner and friend in the European Union, the Committee of the Regions. Today, let us benefit from our discussions to come up with specific ideas on how to help the countries, cities and regions of the Black Sea basin to be no longer separated by the sea but become united by it.

Thank you.