Greece Takes Over SEECP Chairmanship From Romania

The eighth summit of the South-East European Co-operation Process (SEECP) began in Bucharest on Tuesday (10 May), marking the end of Romania's one-year term as the organisation's chairman-in-office and the beginning of Greece's mandate. The two day event began with a meeting of the SEECP foreign ministers, followed on Wednesday by a meeting of the heads of government of the nine member states -- Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Macedonia, Romania, Serbia-Montenegro and Turkey. Representatives of a number of international organisations are also attending, including the EU, the OSCE, the UN, NATO, the Council of Europe and the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe. According to a Romanian Foreign Ministry statement, the main topic on the agenda is SEECP's role in democratic stability processes and as a platform for regional co-operation.

Co-operation was the theme of Romanian President Traian Basescu's opening address. Noting that countries in the region face common challenges, "from terrorism to trafficking in human beings and organised crime", he urged them to work together to find solutions.

The summit took place less than a month after Romania and Bulgaria signed their accession treaty with the EU. Greece is the only SEECP country that is already an EU member.

"I am convinced that Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov and Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis will agree with me that we should share our countries' experience in order to speed up the processes in the Western Balkan countries," Bulgaria's Focus agency quoted Basescu as saying. Membership in the Euro-Atlantic structures is the only option for achieving security and stability in the region, he added.

Addressing the foreign ministers on Tuesday, Romanian Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu said SEECP countries have a common goal of joining the EU and should thus overcome the legacies of the past.

Stressing the importance of partnership and sharing of experience on the road to Europe, the prime minister said that economic co-operation, joint efforts in fighting organised crime and corruption, and harmonisation of the judicial system with EU standards were some of the major challenges confronting the countries. Tariceanu called for strengthened security in the Balkans and for working in partnership with the EU and NATO. He added that Kosovo is one of the important issues today, not only for the UN but for the entire region.

Regional media reports on Tuesday also cited Kosovo as one of the key issues the SEE country leaders were expected to discuss during the summit. Other topics mentioned included the development of infrastructure in the region and the co-ordination of co-operation processes.

Describing the issue of Kosovo's future status as a very delicate matter, with a potentially enormous impact on regional stability and security, BiH Foreign Minister Mladen Ivanic said it could only be resolved through dialogue and in the best interest of all sides.

On Tuesday, Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Minister Vuk Draskovic sought support from the SEECP member states for his country's bid to join NATO's Partnership for Peace programme. Serbia-Montenegro does not deserve isolation, Draskovic told the summit, voicing hope that NATO membership was a viable target for 2007, to be followed by EU accession.