EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ioanian Sea Region – Concept and backgrounds

The 3083rd General Affairs Council in its conclusion at meeting held on 23 April 2011 stated:
Conclusions of 13 April 2011, points 19/21 : “19. CALLS UPON the Member States concerned and the Commission to ensure full transparency and visibility as far as the implementation process and further development of the Strategy is concerned and to disseminate to all Member States information, good practices and lessons learned, on the basis of experiences acquired, in view of possible future macro-regional
strategies.
20. Considering the results achieved as well as experiences and good practices acquired during the implementation of existing macro-regional strategies, INVITES the Commission to clarify the concept of macro-regional strategies, to evaluate their value added and submit the outcomes to the Council and the European Parliament by June 2013.
21. INVITES the Member States in cooperation with the Commission to continue to work on possible future macro-regional strategies.”

Furthermore, European Council in its conclusion on 23 June stated:
Conclusions of 23 June 2011, other points – third : “The European Council: (…) endorsed the EU Strategy for the Danube Region and called on all relevant actors to
implement it without delay, as outlined in the Council’s conclusions of 13 April 2011;
Member States are invited to continue work in cooperation with the Commission on possible
future macro-regional strategies, in particular as regards the Adriatic and Ionian region;”

Moving from “Maritime Strategy”, the concept behind the Adriatic and Ioanian Sea Region was endorsed by Maria Damanaki, the EU commissioner for maritime affairs and fisherieson last 24th of May.

“The Adriatic Ionian countries are bound not only by historical links and a common cultural heritage, but also by a shared responsibility for their sea,” she said.
Addressing ministers from the eight countries, Damanaki said she had instructed her staff to work with them on a ‘Maritime Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian’.
“I extend a special welcome to the non-EU countries and I gladly invite you all to work with us in the coming year, so as to have a proposal ready in 2012,” she concluded.

In the same occasion, Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik also expressed his backing for the macro-region.
“I am convinced that cooperation will be essential for identifying and addressing the specific challenges for the marine environment in the Adriatic and Ionian Seas and implementing successfully the ecosystem-based approach to the management of human activities”.

Furthermore, the president of the EU’s Committee of the Regions (CoR), Mercedes Bresso, gave her strong support to the demand for a new macro-regional strategy.
“From overfishing to chemical pollution, the Adriatic and Ionian face many challenges that can only be solved if all neighbouring countries pull in the same direction,” said Bresso.
“A European strategy for the entire Adriatic-Ionian ‘macro-region’ would give us the means to tackle these issues together,” the Italian explained.
According to Bresso, participating in a macro-regional strategy would also be a way for the candidate countries and potential candidates in the Western Balkans to strengthen their cooperation with the European Union.
“Proper involvement of local authorities keeps citizens close to the accession process and informed about its concrete advantages,” she added.
Bresso called for a macro-regional strategy to be launched “right now, at a crucial time for defining priorities on future funding programmes for post-2013”.

The CoR is currently preparing an own-initiative opinion on “Territorial cooperation in the Mediterranean through an Adriatic and Ionian Macro-region”. The opinion, drafted by the president of Italy’s Marche Region, Gian Mario Spacca, is due to be adopted at a CoR plenary session in October.

The “Adriatic and Ionian Sea Macro-region” would involve national and regional authorities in 3 EU member states – Italy, Slovenia, Greece – and 6 countries that are preparing to join the EU – Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania and Kosovo.