Ministry of Foreign Affairs Office for the Strategy

The EU Strategy for the Danube Region

Carmen Podgorean, National Coordinator,EU Strategy for the Danube region • The Region • Role of • How does it work ? Projects Black Sea Synergy

The Region

• 115 million people , 14 countries , fifth part of EU surface • Danube – most international river in the world – 10 countries, 4 capitals • Danube – second river of Europe – 2860 km (1075 in Romania) • Danube – important European transport corridor (VII) • Connects Europe to the Black Sea Region, South Caucasus and Central Asia • Connects Black Sea to North Sea, via Rhine-Main- Danube channel

What is the EU Strategy for the Danube Region ? • A regional cooperation initiative of Romania and Austria, targeting the economic development of the region

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro

What is the role of Romania?

• Co-initiator of the Strategy, with Austria. • Political leadership of the Strategy – with Austria • Coordinates 3 priority areas – navigability, environmental risks, culture and tourism • Enhancing the external dimension of the Strategy – - connection with the Black Sea region

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro How is the Strategy implemented ?

4 objectives

• Interconnectivity • Protecting the environment • Building prosperity • Strengthening the region

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro

… 11 priority areas

Priority Area Countries in charge of coordination

P1 | Mobility and intermodality Inland waterways: Austria, Romania Rail, road and air: Slovenia, P2 | More sustainable energy Hungary, Czech Republic P3 | Culture and tourism, people to people , Romania

P4 | Water Quality Hungary, Slovakia P5 | Environmental risks Hungary, Romania P6 | Biodiversity, landscapes, quality of air Germany (Bavaria), Croatia and soils P7 | Knowledge society (research, Slovakia, Serbia education and ICT) P8 | Competitiveness of enterprises Germany (Baden-Württemberg), Croatia P9 | People and skills Austria, Moldova P10 | Institutional capacity and cooperation Austria (), Slovenia

P11 | Security and organised crime Germany, Bulgaria

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro Achievments of the Strategy - First European Commission implementation

• Strategy puts in placereport an operational April, 9cooperation 2013 structure to address challenges the Danube Region

The Strategy: • – promotes concrete transnational projects with impacts on the Region and gives new impulse to action in the Region; • – supports the coordination of different national and EU policies and funds, and paves the way for more coherence and better results, with more impact for 2014-2020; • – develops a wide-ranging cooperation platform, addressing challenges that have been identified as needing joint attention; • – highlights the political importance of the Region, through strategic support at ministerial level and concrete advances in terms of implementation; Perspectives

• Ensure systematic embedding of the Strategy in EU, national and regional programmes for the period 2014-2020, especially European Structural and Investment Funds, Horizon 2020, COSME and the Connecting Europe Facility • Ensuring sustainable leadership and strategic planning for the Strategy • establish the Annual Forum as the main event of the year, giving strategic direction, creating linkages and common approaches • Annual Forum, Bucharest October 28/29 Major EUSDR projects (1)

• Constanţa port at the Black Sea as a regional logistic hub • Rehabilitation and development of ports infrastructure; • Second bridge over Danube – -Vidin; • New bridge across the Danube • Improving navigation conditions on the Danube • Rehabilitation of locks on the Danube-Black Sea Canal and the Poarta Alba-Midia Navodari Canal

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro Major EUSDR projects (2)

• Traffic vessel management and information system on the Danube • Ship-generated waste collection and processing system on the Romanian Danube ports • Energy interconnections with neighbouring countries; • Environment risk management - Danube Risk • Monitoring water quality - DANUBE WATER • Management flood risk - Danube Flood Plain The Danube – Pan European Corridor no. VII

•The Danube - an efficient alternative to the European rail and road congested transport .

•Romanian sector – 1,075 km, Danube’s most navigable section

•A target is to develop efficient multimodal terminals at Danube river ports to connect inland waterways with rail and road transport by 2020 Constanta Port – important link in the European transport network Corridor IV Corridor IX

•Corridor links: Dresden/Nurenberg via • Corridor links: Helsinki – Vyborg – Praga, Vienna/, to St. Petersburg – Pskov – Moscow – Romania Kaliningrad – Kiev – • 2 branches in Romania: Arad via Bucharest Ljubashevka/Rozdilna – Chisinau – to Constanta, Arad via Craiova to – to Bucharest – Giurgiu – Thessaloniki and Istanbul Dimitrovgrad • completion of the Bucharest – Constanta •Connection is made through the Highway A2 in 2012 national railway network Constanta Port – Hub for the Central and Eastern Europe trade • For goods in transit from the Far East and Africa to destinations in Central Europe the link Danube River – Constanta Port is made via Danube – Black Sea Canal and offers a maritime transport alternative which is 4,165 km shorter. . •Largest port in Black Sea, with natural depths that can accommodate the largest ships (300 meters) passing through Bosphorus Strait Black Sea Synergy - BSS (1)

• The EUSDR is complementary to the EU Black Sea Synergy - another Romanian initiative within the EU. • April, 11, 2007 - Commission Communication “Black Sea Synergy – A New Regional Cooperation Initiative”, endorsed by the European Council on June 2007 • - The primary task of BSS - development of cooperation within the Black Sea region and between the region and the EU • Main cooperation areas : - democracy, human rights, good governance - border management, security, - energy, transport, environment, - research, innovation , maritime policy, fisheries, trade.

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro Black Sea Synergy – BSS (2)

• Black Sea Synergy (BSS) - Black Sea region recognized as strategic for the EU; need for strengthened EU involvement in the area

• March, 16, 2010 – launching of a Partnership on the Environment (Romania lead)

• interconnectivity among many of the flagship projects developed under Black Sea Synergy and EUSDR:

- Improving the quality of Danube water will diminish the pollution of the Black Sea. - the transport and energy routes have to be analysed in close connection.

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro Future European Strategy for the Black Sea region – (BSR) (1) • Resolution of the European Parliament (January 2011) - the necessity to adopt a European Strategy for the Black Sea - putting the Black Sea region high on the agenda of the European Union. Resolution underlined : • Black Sea region is of strategic importance for the EU;

• BSR as strategic bridge connecting Europe with the Caspian Sea area, Central Asia and the Middle East, with south-east Asia and China;

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro Future European Strategy for the Black Sea region (BSR) (2) • BSR - geo-strategic importance for the energy security of the EU

• high interest in joint cooperation projects in the Black Sea region - large number of applications - Joint Operational Programme for Cross- Border Cooperation in the Black Sea Basin (ENPI)

• EP Resolution - creation of a specific budgetary line for the BSR Strategy • Main objective BSR Strategy - to establish an area of peace, democracy, prosperity and stability, founded on respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and providing for EU energy security

• Priority actions : - good governance, rule of law, human rights, migration management, energy, transport, environment.

Office for the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) | www.mae.ro

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION !

Carmen Podgorean EUSDR National Coordinator