Third Steering Group Meeting in 2024 under the Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea

Third Steering Group Meeting in 2024 under the Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea

Author: Black Sea Assistance Mechanism

The third Steering Group Meeting of 2024 under the Common Maritime Agenda (CMA) for the Black Sea took place on 12 September in Chișinău, complementing the Black Sea Stakeholder Conference 2024. Chaired by Moldova, the meeting brought together national coordinators from Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova, Romania, Türkiye, and Ukraine, alongside representatives from the European Commission (i.e., the Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE), the Directorate-General Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO), the Directorate-General European Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations (DG NEAR), and the European External Action Service (EEAS).  National Hubs and regional observers from the World Bank, the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), the Black Sea Commission (BSC), the Interreg NEXT Black Sea Programme (INTERREG NEXT BSB), and the Conference for Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) also attended the meeting.  

The meeting opened with remarks from the Moldovan coordinator and the European Commission on the importance of cooperation in the Black Sea region. Participants discussed the outcomes of the 2024 Black Sea Stakeholder Conference, followed by a presentation of the EEAS on the 4th implementation report of the Black Sea Synergy (BSS) and its main outcomes. The report regional activities highlighted efforts from 2019 to 2023, addressing challenges like Russia´s war of the aggression against Ukraine. Key points of discussion included improved maritime cooperation, enhanced civil society engagement, and regional transport integration, with a call from the European Council in June 2024 for a new strategic approach focused on security, stability, and resilience. The EEAS and the Commission will jointly work on the preparation of a Joint Communication on a future Black Sea strategy.

The Black Sea Assistance Mechanism (BSAM) presented a policy feedback report on the three sea basin strategies (Black Sea, Atlantic, and West Mediterranean), stressing the need for diversified funding, as well as increased synergies on topics such as energy transition, blue skills, and investment engagement. This was followed by a debrief on the CMA participation in the 2024 edition of the European Maritime Day, where the 3 EU sea basin coordinators for the Atlantic, WestMed and CMA called for enhanced collaboration, including giving representatives an observer role in the respective governance bodies, and suggested the creation of a cross-sea basin working group on blue skills. DG MARE debriefed on past events, including the EU macro regional and sea basin strategies day held in June, in Brussels, where closer synergies were discussed between these two cooperation frameworks. For the CMA, this might be notably the case with the EU Strategy for the Danube Region. 

Countries expressed their support for more cross-basin synergies, particularly crucial for learning from more established initiatives on topics such as marine pollution control, renewable energy, and coastal tourism. They also emphasised the importance of maximising funding opportunities and building capacity through joint events and initiatives. The discussed country priorities covered topics of sustainable maritime development, including maritime transport, aquaculture, and blue skills for job creation. Countries emphasized sustainable practices in aquaculture, fisheries, and tourism, particularly focusing on reducing carbon footprints and improving maritime infrastructure. Efforts to modernize ports, adopt decarbonization projects, and enhance legislation in line with EU standards were highlighted. Collaboration on pollution reduction, river basin management, and stakeholder engagement is considered as crucial by all participating members of the CMA, while investments in green technology and infrastructure upgrades are shared goals across regions. 

On another agenda point, the Black Sea countries welcomed the proposal made by Türkiye, regarding the possible re-establishment of the technical group of experts on sustainable tourism, with a focus on underwater cultural heritage. Countries agreed to discuss this proposal further at the next Steering Group meeting.