Assistant Minister Marušić attends conference on EU Strategy for Adriatic-Ionian Region

A conference on the EU Strategy for the Adriatic-Ionian Region (EUSAIR), organized by the Greek presidency and the European Commission, is being held 6 and 7 February in Athens

A conference on the EU Strategy for the Adriatic-Ionian Region (EUSAIR), organized by the Greek presidency and the European Commission, is being held 6 and 7 February in Athens. Apart from numerous foreign ministers of participating countries, also attending the conference are the Greek prime minister and high representatives of the European Commission, Committee of the Regions and ECOSOC, while Croatia is being represented by Assistant Minister for European Affairs Hrvoje Marušić.

One of the key aims of the conference is to raise awareness about preparations for the new Strategy, to be adopted in the latter half of 2014.

Stimulating economic growth, reducing unemployment and social cohesion are the main challenges of the Adriatic-Ionian Region that were discussed today, as were the possible long-term and sustainable solutions of macro-regional perspective.

The Strategy is closely tied to the Greek presidency priorities for the first half of 2014, and those are growth, employment and cohesion, as well as to maritime policy as a theme that will horizontally influence the priorities of the EU presidency.

“Adopting and implementing the new macro-regional strategy will contribute to the common goal of stimulating growth and sustainable development of the region,” Marušić said, underlining the importance of taking full advantage of macro-regional cooperation in areas that are crucial for the economic prosperity of our citizens. Promoting sustainable economic growth, employment and business opportunities in the “blue economy”, better connections through intermodal transport, improved energy infrastructure, environmental protection and sustainable development of coastal regions, Marušić said, are ways to enable growth, employment and territorial cohesion, notably between coast and inland. He said the crucial areas of cooperation were energy supply, solving the incomplete transport linkage in terms of corridors (the Adriatic-Ionian corridor) as well as port and rural hinterland development.

Commissioner Damanaki underlined the importance of maritime spatial planning, dealing with natural disasters and maritime security.

“Croatia strongly supports EUSAIR as a catalyst of enlargement revitalization and advocates participation in the macro-regional strategy among all the countries in the region,” Marušić said, stressing the importance of merging macro-regional projects with territorial cooperation and operative programs of the participant countries, as well as the importance of achieving synergy with other forms of regional cooperation.

The assistant minister emphasized Croatia’s commitment to creating a Strategy with a balanced governing system that allows for taking initiative, stimulates cooperation and brings concrete results.

Marušić also attended a special meeting of the Adriatic-Ionian Council which gathered foreign minister of the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative member states as well as the meeting of EUSAIR national contact points with European Commissioner Johannes Hahn.

On the fringes of the plenary part of the conference, Marušić held talks with Montenegrin State Secretary and Chief Negotiator Aleksandar Andrija Pejović, who thanked Croatia for its assistance through the Centre of Excellence. The two officials also discussed future forms of cooperation.

Marušić also met with Director General of the Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP) Thakos Dokos and familiarized him with the activities of the Centre of Excellence. They agreed to continue the cooperation and discussed its future modalities.

The second day of the conference will see parallel thematic workshops on four pillars of the new Strategy: driving innovative maritime and marine growth, connecting the region (transport and energy), preserving, protecting and improving the quality of the environment and increasing regional attractiveness (tourism).

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