State Secretary for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Zdenko Lucić on Thursday participated in a videoconference of trade ministers of the Southeast European Cooperation Process (SEECP) member states.
The conference was organized by Turkey, which is chairing the SEECP 2020-2021, and also saw the participation of Greece, Romania, Serbia, Moldova, Slovenia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, and North Macedonia. The topic was “Post-Pandemic Trade in Southeast Europe: Challenges and Possibilities”.
Lucić underscored the importance of regional cooperation and a stronger post-pandemic economic cooperation, the importance of integrating regional companies in global supply chains and the advantages of EU’s Economic and Investment Plan for the Western Balkans as a tool for the region’s long-term economic recovery.
To ensure fair trade in the post-pandemic environment, the state secretary stressed the need for adopting a comprehensive approach in all available forums – multilateral, regional, bilateral and national.
Conclusively, Lucić underlined Croatia’s willingness to support all those efforts that contribute to a coordinated approach and the strengthening of Southeast Europe’s preparedness for future challenges.