Download Future of Baltic Sea regional cooperation and the role of

SPEECH/04/553
Siim Kallas
Vice President designate of the European Commission responsible
for Administration, Audit and fight against Fraud
Future
of
Baltic
Sea
regional
cooperation and the role of the Council
of the Baltic Sea States
Baltic Sea States Summit
Tallinn (Estonia) 21 June 2004
Prime ministers, ladies and gentlemen,
The Council of the Baltic Sea States was founded only 12 years ago, but of course
the 12 members of the Council share a much older, rich cultural heritage, dating
back to the Hanseatic League.
However, the creation of the CBSS in 1992 was particularly timely. It gave the
reborn Baltic nation-states a first, new experience and confidence in international
co-operation, establishing closer contacts to their Baltic Sea neighbours. The
creation of the CBSS also allowed Russia’s Baltic neighbours to signal their strong
desire to maintain close relations with Russia. As such, the Council definitely has
played a very positive role, benefiting all of its members.
The successful role played by the Council over the last 12 years should give us
confidence in looking ahead towards the future of Baltic Sea regional cooperation. In
doing so, the recent EU enlargement and the strength and vitality of EU-Russia
relations gives us further confidence that the Baltic region is in the middle of
positive, dynamic change. Indeed, the EU has renewed its Northern Dimension
policy. We have strengthened our cross-border cooperation programmes and
progress has been made in the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership.
All these recent developments offer new opportunities for reinforced co-operation in
this region.
In this context, I find it useful for the “owners” of the Council to reflect on the
structure, functions and purposes of the Council. In my view, there are at least two
things to keep in mind:
First, with the recent enlargement, 8 out of 11 CBSS Member States are now part of
the EU. Most of the issues dealt with by the CBSS Economic and Trade Ministerial
meetings have become part of EU-Russia bilateral discussions. Discussions on
those issues in the CBSS framework add very little value. In fact, at the recent
ministerial meeting on economic and trade issues (Tallinn 20 April 2004) a
declaration with no major points of substance was adopted, with only three ministers
attending. The Commission therefore considers that EU-Russia bilateral economic
relations should be dealt with in the context of the EU-Russia common economic
space and in the framework of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement or in
relevant international fora, such as the WTO.
Secondly, the CBSS is in danger of "over-institutionalisation". Multiple working
groups and task forces have been created over the years, raising the evident
problem of coordination, and of our ability to follow up concretely on the work of
these different groups. At the same time, coordination between the different regional
bodies should be enhanced, building on steps already under way. To avoid any
overlap or duplication of activities, the Commission would welcome a discussion on
how to achieve a suitable division of labour.
Considering these two points, we find it essential for the CBSS to identify the key
areas of added value, and make Baltic Cooperation over the coming decade as
successful as the last.
There are many fields in which this added value can be found. One such area would
be to exploit the ability of the CBSS to reach out to the people of the Baltic Sea
Region, encouraging cooperation at local and regional level, among the actors from
local government, from the business and academic communities, and from civil
society as a whole. The CBSS can give a voice to the shared aspirations of the
people of the Baltic, and can help promote a shared vision of the future
development of the region.
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A second priority area should be the environment, a point we will return to under the
next agenda item.
In conclusion, I believe these reflections about the future of our Baltic regional
cooperation are necessary and well under way in the CBSS. We should give it all
our support.
Economic cooperation, investment and infrastructure
A number of key developments this year have improved the economic prospects of
the Baltic Sea region. One of these is EU enlargement. It has been a guiding
principle of the enlargement, that it would offer enhanced economic prospects not
only to EU members, but also to our regional and global partners. Related to this
has been the successful extension of the EU/Russia Partnership and Cooperation
Agreement to the ten new EU member states and the enlargement agreements with
our EEA partners.
Russia’s preparations for WTO entry have also advanced, with a key step taken in
May with the completion of our bilateral negotiations with Russia. Russia’s WTO
accession will enhance openness, transparency and predictability -- elements that
are key to attracting foreign investment and generate economic growth. Continued
work on the common economic space between the EU and Russia will reinforce our
already close economic ties.
These developments must be complemented by enhanced economic cooperation at
regional and local levels, encouraging the private sector to establish stronger links
across the region, and listening to the private sector when they identify bottlenecks
or barriers. While, as mentioned earlier, many of these issues are best pursued in
other relevant fora, this Summit should of course reiterate our political will of working
together to promote the Baltic region as a dynamic partner in Europe and in the
global economy.
Maritime Safety and marine environment protection
The Baltic Sea is a fragile eco-system, surrounded by some of the world’s most
industrialised countries. Accordingly, the IMO has designated a large part of the
Baltic as a Particularly Sensitive Sea Area, and I would emphasise the importance
which the EU attaches to the marine environment in the Baltic
The main threats have been identified recently by the Helsinki Commission at its
meeting in Bremen 2003. Let me list some of them:
- eutrophication with toxic effects
- the introduction of alien species
- over-fishing, leading to the depletion of stocks (cod)
- hazardous substances threatening humans and the ecosystem
- maritime safety and the risk of accidents, such as oil spills
In fact, an oil spill would have dramatic consequences for the marine environment
and for all Baltic coastal regions. Hence, we cannot stress enough the importance of
the ban on the carriage of heavy grades of oil in single-hulled tankers, decided by
the IMO in December 2003.
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The EU has already implemented this ban for vessels travelling to and from EU
ports. A new EC regulation came into force on 21 October 2003, requiring the most
polluting types of oil (heavy grades of crude and fuel oils) to be carried in double-hull
oil tankers only. However, this applies only to oil tankers entering or leaving a port of
the European Union, not oil tankers transiting in international waters or straits.
Therefore, the new Regulation does not solve the maritime safety problem caused
by ageing single hull tankers bound to or from the Gulf of Finland, where you will
recall that during the 2002-2003 winter several oil tankers were trapped in ice. This
stretched the region’s ice breaking fleet to its limits. Since such tankers could crack
under pressure from the frozen sea, let us not put our marine environment at the
mercy of the extreme weather conditions in the region.
The EU therefore urges all concerned parties to follow the IMO invitation to impose
an immediate ban on heavy grades of crude and fuel oils carried in single-hull
tankers, rather than waiting until the April 2005 deadline.
In addition to this, there is the increasing evidence that the risk of climate changes
have to be taken seriously also in the case of the Baltic environment. As you know,
Russian ratification of the Kyoto Protocol was discussed at the EU-Russia Summit in
Moscow on 21 May, and so today I will only reiterate the importance we attach to
this issue.
The CBSS could add real value by showing an example to the world that it is able to
generate the political will necessary to handle these environmental challenges.
The Social dimension of regional co-operation
As regards the social dimension of our regional cooperation, it is imperative that all
of us step up our action on some of the common challenges which the region faces,
in fields such as public health, HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis, or the fight against
organised crime and trafficking. No country is immune, and it is only through shared
efforts that we can defeat these challenges.
As mentioned earlier, the social dimension agenda of the CBSS could also focus on
formulating the shared aspirations of the people of the Baltic, promoting a shared
vision of the future development of the region, drawing on its rich, cultural heritage.
Thank you for your attention.
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