Upon the initiative of the Moldovan CEI Presidency, on 29 May, the CEI-Executive Secretariat (CEI-ES) participated in a BSEC-CEI Coordination Meeting in Istanbul at the premises of the BSEC’s Permanent International Secretariat (PERMIS), and in the presence of the Troikas of both Organisations (CEI: Moldova – current, Bulgaria – past and Albania – next; BSEC: Serbia – current, Moldova – past and Türkiye – next).
The goal was to present the respective activities of both the Troikas and of the two Secretariats, which aimed at promoting regional dialogue and cooperation in areas of mutual interest and in the countries the two Organisations have in common (i.e., Albania, Bulgaria, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Ukraine).
The meeting, in fact, represented a unique opportunity to exchange views and focus on possible paths to identify complementarity of work, in particular, on activities covering topics such as connectivity, climate, environment and energy, culture and cultural tourism.
In this context, the CEI-ES representatives presented the CEI working methodology in tackling such topics, which combines multilateral diplomacy with fund, programme, and project management; the promotion of strategic partnerships with international and regional organisations was also presented as an integral part of this approach.
BSEC PERMIS representatives presented some of the flagship projects in the above-mentioned sectors, where room for possible cooperation with regional stakeholders could be envisaged.
The meeting ended with a debate between the two delegations, suggesting new inputs for future collaborations of mutual interest; in this framework, they concluded that, since the demand for regional cooperation was high, optimisation of efforts through joint forces was essential and, therefore, agreed to continue with consultations.
For more info: arsova@cei.int