Kapetanović: Regional cooperation is not a slogan, but a necessity

Regional cooperation is not a slogan, but a necessity, said the Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC), Amer Kapetanović, the organization announced.

At a summit held yesterday under the Bulgarian chairmanship, the leaders of the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) adopted the Declaration of the SEECP Summit in Sofia, marking thirty years of regional responsibility and reaffirming the importance of continued cooperation, stability, security and sustainability across South East Europe.

As stated in the statement, the leaders of the South East Europe Cooperation Process also accepted the Annual Report of the Regional Cooperation Council, which can be found on the organization's website, as well as the mid-term updated strategy for South East Europe 2030, and confirmed their support for the work of the Regional Cooperation Council in improving regional cooperation, European integration and achieving concrete results for citizens, businesses and institutions.

Speaking at the summit, Kapetanović said that Southeast Europe has a functional regional cooperation mechanism, concrete results, clear public support and continued government support, but that the magnitude and speed of global changes require a stronger strategic response.

"Thirty years ago, the South East European Cooperation Process helped to renew the practice of dialogue. Today, it must help to establish the practice of achieving strategic results. Our region faces a triple pressure, the pressure of demography, the pressure of productivity and the pressure of resilience. If we do not address them, these pressures can turn into serious threats. That is why South East Europe cannot afford fragmented responses to common structural challenges. Regional cooperation is not a slogan, it is a necessity," he said.

The leaders of the South East European Cooperation Process welcomed the Annual Report of the Regional Cooperation Council and commended the organization's contribution to strengthening cooperation, coordination and implementation in the region. They expressed support for the continued work of the Regional Cooperation Council in translating political priorities into practical results and stressed the importance of having a regional platform within which common challenges can be addressed in a strategic and coordinated manner.

In the Declaration of the Sofia Summit, the participants of the South East European Cooperation Process thanked the Regional Cooperation Council for its services as the operational part of the SEECP in promoting regional cooperation, recognized its added value as a hub for regional cooperation, and called on the upcoming Bucharest Presidency to continue strengthening the synergy between the South East European Cooperation Process and the Regional Cooperation Council, including by facilitating the work of the Council in supporting the SEECP framework and the European aspirations of the participants in this Process.

The Declaration confirmed the European perspective of the participants in the South East European Cooperation Process aspiring to the European Union, highlighted the importance of inclusive regional cooperation and good neighborly relations, and recognized the role of the Common Regional Market in advancing economic integration as well as integration into the single market of the European Union.

The summit ended with the official handover of the chairmanship of the South East European Cooperation Process from Sofia to Bucharest, which will continue cooperation in the region in the coming period.