Regions of the Black Sea: Common borders, Common solutions
2nd AER Black Sea Regional Policy Conference (Batumi, Georgia, 5-6 April 2011)
Speech by Emin Yeritsyan, Chair of the Current Affairs Committee, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe
President,
Excellences,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a great pleasure for me to speak to you today, representing the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe. The Congress and the Assembly of European Regions have been long-standing partners in a wide range of areas, and our cooperation in the Black Sea basin is proof of this synergy. The Congress was pleased to take part in the first conference on the regions of the Black Sea in Paris in February last year, and it is encouraging to see that the Assembly has pursued this initiative which brings us today to the shores of the Black Sea itself.
The themes of this conference are highly relevant to the work of the Congress which sees cross-border and interregional cooperation as one of the primary axes of its action. Indeed, the Statutory Resolution of the Committee of Ministers, adopting the Congress Charter, establishes as one of our objectives the “promot[ion of] co-operation between local and regional authorities”.[1]
Today, in this era of globalisation and European integration, at a time when power is being decentralised to local and regional levels, when national governments are entering into partnerships with local and regional authorities as equal stakeholders in development, this cooperation must transcend national borders and build bridges between communities in different countries which otherwise would keep their distance one from the one. In the Congress, we are convinced that cross-border and interregional co-operation between communities provides an excellent opportunity for boosting territorial development, achieving greater territorial cohesion, and helping to reduce regional disparities.
It has been said on may occasions that today, governments alone are no longer able to address efficiently the multitude and complexity of issues facing our communities, facing our citizens. In the Black Sea basin in particular, cross-border dialogue and interaction between municipalities and regions, the sharing of experience, and co-operation on joint projects are of paramount importance for peace, stability and the sustainable development of this region as a whole, a region which has been confronted with ecological fragility, environmental problems, and the challenges of illegal migration and organised crime, a region which is still facing so-called “frozen” conflicts.
This is why the Black Sea basin has been a priority area for the Congress’ activities. Politically, socio-economically and environmentally, it has become one of the most sensitive regions in Europe. It is a crossroads of cultural, commercial and energy routes along the East-West and North-South axes; an area shared by many different cultures, religions and ethnicities; a meeting point of Europe and Asia and a juncture where Europe's political East meets the West. In addition, through the Danube and the Mediterranean basins, this area is closely linked to central and eastern Europe in economic, social and environmental terms.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
We are convinced that the Black Sea basin offers an enormous potential for cross-border and interregional co-operation. The Congress has been seeking to develop this cooperation through the Black Sea Euroregion, created in 2008, which is a local and regional co-operation framework and a platform for joint initiatives between cities and regions.
There is indeed a fertile ground for cross-border co-operation in the Black Sea basin thanks to the long standing traditions of commercial and cultural exchanges, of co-existence of civilisations and religions, and of discovery and exploration. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia and thus of major political and economic interest, throughout its history the Black Sea region has been 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.
In other words, the high economic, social, environmental, and geo-strategic stakes represented by the Black Sea basin mean it is imperative to build much closer co-operation between cities and regions; to counterbalance tensions by dialogue and joint projects between local and regional authorities and to improve the prosperity, stability and security of their populations.
With this in mind, the Congress launched a process of establishing a common space for cooperation and dialogue between local and regional authorities in the Black Sea basin. We were particularly inspired by the success of our initiative which led in 2006 to the creation of the Adriatic Euroregion. The Adriatic Euroregion is an innovative platform of structured co-operation that, first, brings together and promotes cross-border co-operation between communities from European Union and non-EU member countries, and, secondly, involves representatives of national level and, of course, regional and local authorities which do not necessarily share common borders, whether territorial or maritime.
As part of its efforts in the Black Sea basin, the Congress organised three international conferences: in Constanta (Romania) in March 2006, in Samsun (Turkey) in November 2006 and in Odessa (Ukraine) in June 2007. The Black Sea Euroregion was then formally created in Varna (Bulgaria) in September 2008 where the draft Constituent Act and the draft Statutes were signed.
The objective of the Congress was to reinforce local and regional cross-border co-operation in specific areas of common interest and concern, in particular problems of coastal management, environmental protection, migration, promotion of tourism, transport development and use of energy sources.
These Black Sea initiatives today also offer a great potential for co-operation with the European Union in the framework of its Black Sea Synergy, in the spirit of complementarity. During this conference, we will be discussing some successful examples of this complementarity. Today, such co-operation with local and regional communities of EU countries, much as cross-border and interregional co-operation as a whole, have a sound legal basis – the Madrid Convention on transfrontier co-operation, adopted by the Council of Europe in 1980 and since complemented by three additional protocols.
The third Additional Protocol in particular, which was opened for signature by Council of Europe member states in November 2009, aims to facilitate the setting up of Euro-regional co-operation groupings between communities of EU and non-EU member states.
We hope for the early entry into force of this Protocol, and for new initiatives with the European Union as a result of its practical implementation. The European Commission has its own cooperation instrument, the European Grouping for Territorial Cooperation (EGTC), created in 2006, which is soon be reviewed to allow for more cross-border activities and projects. We also hope that the Council of Europe and the European Commission will be working closer together to foster interregional co-operation, in particular in the Black Sea basin.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today, the Congress is looking to launch peer-to-peer exchange programmes between local and regional authorities around the Black Sea, as a follow-up to its recommendations on specific countries of the basin, with the purpose of establishing a better dialogue between communities. One way of promoting this dialogue between local authorities is, for example, through local democracy agencies, LDAs. They were first set up by the Congress in South-East Europe in 1993 to restore trust and build confidence between communities through concrete projects on the ground, involving local authorities. This endeavour proved so successful that the network expanded into South Caucasus by opening its 12th agency in Kutaisi, Georgia, and established the Association of Local Democracy Agencies, ALDA.
At the same time, we should also be strengthening dialogue between local and regional authorities and national governments, and in this regard associations of local and regional authorities play a crucial role as a representative voice of the grassroots level. I could mention another successful initiative of the Congress, which brought together associations of local authorities in South-East European countries into a cooperation network, now operating under the name NALAS, Network of Associations of Local Authorities of South-East Europe. We would certainly welcome a similar network here, in South Caucasus, and we were encouraged by the proposal to set up a Standing Forum of Local and Regional Authorities of the South Caucasus, put forward by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Territorial Administration of Armenia Armen Gevorgyan during a Congress session two years ago.
We also hope that the efforts for Black Sea co-operation of organisations and institutions representing regional authorities, such as the Assembly of European Regions, will take due account of the current efforts of the Black Sea Euroregion, and will seek to create synergies with this association.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Ancient Greek seafarers knew the Black Sea under the name Pontos Euxeinos – “hospitable sea”. This image of a friendly and accommodating Black Sea 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 basin into an area of peace and stability. Today, let us benefit from our discussions to come up with specific ideas on how the Black Sea can unite the countries, cities and regions of this basin rather than separate them.
Thank you.