Europe of the Carpathians

Home , Carpathian Euroregion, Via Carpathia

Text Professor Waldemar Paruch

Design and layout Zdzisław Byczek, Hubert Sander

Editor Katarzyna Chrzanowska

Photographs: Solina (Bieszczady Mountains) – M. Wideryński View from Łąki Nowiny (Pieniny Mountains) – J. Opioła Krynica Zdrój spa – G. Pietrzak Krasiczyn Castle – Wikimedia Commons Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland Marek Kuchciński – P. Kula 8th International Conference “Europe of the Carpathians” – Institute of European Studies Astronomical and Meteorological Observatory on the peak of Pip Ivan in the interwar period (Chornohora, Ukraine) – S. Szczyrbak Kancelaria Sejmu EUROPE OF THE Retezat Mountains (Southern Carpathians) – Wydawnictwo Sejmowe B. Miller

© Copyright by CARPATHIANS Maps: Kancelaria Sejmu Carpathian region, project of the Via Carpathia Warszawa 2016 EUROPE communication route, Carpathian region OF THE CARPATHIANS countries in the CEE – drawings by ISBN 978-83-7666-480-4 1 Wydawnictwo Sejmowe A. Leśkiewicz

EuropaKarpat-okl-en.indd 1 22.08.2016 11:19 Text Professor Waldemar Paruch

Design and layout Zdzisław Byczek, Hubert Sander

Editor Katarzyna Chrzanowska

EuropaKarpat-okl-en.indd 1 22.08.2016 11:19 Origins of the “Europe of the Carpathians” Initiative

The initiative “Europe of the Carpathians” came into being in the years 1999–2000 with the launching of the “Green Carpathians” project in the newly established Pod- karpackie Province, inspired by the Province Governor of the day. Its objective was to develop Polish-Slovakian-Ukrainian cooperation. Already at that time attention was focused not only on the need for uniform development of the Central and Eastern European regions (including Polish provinces) but also on the necessity to implement a policy of “balance between economy and ecology”. Growing drinking water short- ages and huge flood damages in mountain and foothill areas are problems that occur in all Carpathian countries and Poland is among the European countries that are the most exposed to them, in particular the provinces located in the Vistula basin. The shape of “Europe of the Carpathians” became clearer with the preparation of the Framework Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Car- pathians in Kiev on 22 May 2003. The Convention became the fundamental constitutive document for cooperation in the Carpathian region. Drawing on the Alpine Convention, seven countries, namely the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Ukraine and Hungary adopted a model for sustainable development in the Carpathians. The opinion prevailed that the Carpathians are a unique region in Europe, requiring international cooperation. Regardless of national boundary lines, the problems, needs and interests of the population of Carpathian towns and villages tend to be the same. The initiative “Europe of the Carpathians” was meant to boost the development potential of the region in a situation, where it was still struggling to overcome the communist heritage and in anticipation of the enlargement of the European Union by the CEE countries. The Carpathian Convention defined the geographical scope of the region and grant- ed the Carpathian states a margin of freedom in the delimitation of its boundaries. Thus, historical, geographical or economic criteria were not the guiding criteria. In line with the sovereign will of the states, the transfrontier Carpathian region came to include, in the geographical sense, both mountains, highlands, lowlands and hollows. The signatories committed themselves to protect biological, landscape and cultural diversity, and adopt a coordinated spatial planning policy. They also defined the principal areas of coopera-

3 Legend borders of the Carpathian region

Carpathian region tion: infrastructure and services, exploitation of natural resources, environmental protection, agriculture and forestry, cultural heritage and traditional knowledge. The meeting of MPs from Carpathian countries organised in Warsaw in November 2007 marked the end of the first phase in the development of Carpathian cooperation. The meeting was called at the initiative of the then Chair of the Environment Protection, Natural Resources and Forestry Committee of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Deputy Marek Kuchciński.

Institutionalisation of the “Europe of the Carpathians” Initiative

The “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative was institutionalised at the social and organisational level in the years 2007–2011. The engagement of Deputy Kuchciński in the project brought about the involvement of an international community of politicians, experts, scientists and regional councillors, who proposed to extend the formula of Carpathian cooperation. While the Carpathian Convention, focusing on administrative

4 units lying in the Carpathians was the determinant in the years 2000–2007, the years 2007–2011 saw the dominance of the belief that reflection was required on sub- -regional cooperation between the Carpathian states, which were unique due to their geopolitical location, Central European political identity and national values formed in the course of historical processes, which had taken place in the lands between Germany and Russia. The social institutionalisation of the “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative meant a shift in thinking about the geographical environment. Rivers, hollows, mountains and natural resources were more than just causes for political conflicts and rivalry between the states in the past, but this region had always seen the interplay of various influences and cultural, religious and ethical aspects. It is they, which made Central and Eastern Europe unique, with its richness and diversity. In keeping with such thinking, the Carpathians unite, rather than divide the inhabitants of the region. They encourage cooperation not only between local communities living in the mountains, but also between Carpathian states. The 1st International Conference “Europe of the Carpathians” had been scheduled for 2010. However, it had to be postponed until the next year due to the Smolensk tragedy. It was held on 26 February 2011 in Przemyśl. It had a parliamentary setting (the Sejm of the Republic of Poland became the main organiser, particularly the Parliamentary Car- pathian Group, with the support of the Senate of the Republic of Poland), but it gathered people from all walks of life (local councillors, NGO activists and scientists). Thus, it laid the laid foundations for cooperation between MPs from the Carpathian states, but on the other hand, it also created a platform for an intellectual and expert debate on Central and Eastern Europe, with a special focus on the Carpathian region.

Krynica Zdrój spa

5 In 2011, the International Conference “Europe of the Carpathians” became part of the Economic Forum in Krynica Zdrój. It was then that the Carpathian Memorandum was adopted – the first document stressing the need to develop a Carpathian Strategy, which would gain not only a local and interstate dimension, but also a European one. It was proposed that the Carpathian Strategy should become one of the instruments of the European Union’s macro-regional policy in line with the principles of sustainable development and subsidiarity.

Krasiczyn Castle

In the years 2011–2016 cyclical international conferences organised mostly in Kryn- ica Zdrój and Krasiczyn have become the main organisational form of the “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative and an instrument of parliamentary diplomacy. They were a meeting place for politicians from Central and Eastern Europe, as well as for CEE intellectuals, Carpathian state and local activists, NGO representatives and experts from various fields. Deputy Marek Kuchciński, the head of the Parliamentary Carpathian Group, Vice-Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland (2010–2015) and then Marshal of the Sejm, was the patron, animator and main organiser of these conferences.

6 Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland Marek Kuchciński in the Przemyśl Castle, 27 February 2016

The topical scope of these Carpathian conferences has been systematically expanding. In the years 2011–2012, they were dominated by matters dealing with transfrontier and international cooperation of European states in mountainous areas and in the Carpathians in particular. At the 2nd International Conference in Nowy Targ under the motto Europe Rich with the Carpathians, the participants discussed mostly the application of the Carpathian Convention to the functioning of Euroregions, development policies for mountainous areas, developing infrastructure in the region, cooperation in tourism and energy, and the operation of Carpathian spas. This period noted tangible successes. The concept of the “Carpathian brand” was introduced in social communication and the brand has been preliminarily identified. In 2012, the meeting in Yaremche decided on a parliamentary support (Polish-Ukrainian

Astronomical and Meteorological Observatory on the peak of Pip Ivan in the interwar period (Chornohora, Ukraine)

7 Legend projected communication route cities on the communication route

Project of the Via Carpathia communication route

Interparliamentary Assembly) for the successive stages of the reconstruction of the Astronomi- cal and Meteorological Observatory on the peak of Pip Ivan (in the Chornohora range in the Ivano-Frankivsk oblast) and the establishment of a Polish-Ukrainian Academic Youth Meeting Centre in Mikulitschin near Yaremche. It is a joint initiative by the Precarpathian National University in Ivano-Frankivsk and the University of Warsaw. Comprehensive proposals were put forward in 2013 – the adoption of an operational programme “Carpathian Horizon 2020” by the European Union and the construction of the Via Carpathia communication route. That “Europe of the Carpathians” conference was organised under the motto with a broad significance – Carpathians for Europe. What can Carpathian states contribute to Europe? New objectives have been also declared: closer political cooperation, including parliamentary cooperation, of the Carpathian states; strengthening political and economic ties; presenting the Carpathian

8 perspective on many strategic European issues. The means to achieve that was to further strengthen organisational institutionalisation of Carpathian cooperation, formulated in the years 2012–2013, by building a parliamentary network (Parliamentary Carpathian Groups, Inter-parliamentary Assembly of Central and Eastern Europe). The project of building a Carpathian parliamentary network was accompanied by intellectual and scientific initiatives – the founding of a Carpathian University and developing a “Car- pathian Encyclopaedia. These priorities have been expanded in the years 2014–2015. The focus was put on the geopolitical significance of the Carpathian region and in 2014, the Krynica Decla- ration lent support to Ukraine in its war with Russia and at the same time, it rejected the policy of passivity in the face of aggression and called for the defence of European rights and values. A new direction has been also outlined – reflection and collaboration for increased security in the region. Panel titles at the 2015 conference were also character- istic: Threats and opportunities for cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe in the context of reviving geopolitics; Nation states as a value and guardians (guarantors) of the diversity of Europe of the Carpathians; The Carpathians without borders – protecting the heritage, anticipating dreams; The “Karpaty” brand, a strategy for the future; Carpathian economy and environmental protection. In quest for of a compromise; infrastructure and investment in the Carpathians – needs, projects, perspectives. The initiative “Europe of the Carpathians” gradually extended the scope of its influence to Carpathian entrepreneurs and intellectuals, but also to politicians from the Baltics and the Caucasus. More and more clearly, the initiative became a broad political project aimed at organising cooperation between CEE states, regardless of their European Union membership.

8th International Conference “Europe of the Carpathians”

9 “Europe of the Carpathians” – centre of Central and Eastern Europe

Transformations, which took place in Europe in the years 1989–1991, have started the reconstruction of CEE identity and subjectivity of states in this region. Two world wars, both of which had started with disputes about Central and Eastern Europe, definitely changed its status. Nation states came into being after WWI, while the end of WWII saw the installation of communist rule. However, the greatest tragedy was the demise of traditional, small homelands, shaped by ages of coexistence of different communities. The threats came from without – imperialism of the superpowers, communism and fas- cism. Absent sustainable cooperation between the states of this part of the continent, they have led to the demise of Central and Eastern Europe. The Carpathians are important not only from the cultural, social and environmental perspective, but they also have a typically transfrontier character and a major communication significance, as well as an exceptional strategic role. Crossed by the North-East axis, which shields the East-West line and lying at its very centre, they are the core of Central and Eastern Europe. The Carpathians divide Central and Eastern Europe, but at the same time they are a keystone of the southern and northern part of this area. Today, the states of Central and Eastern Europe are facing major historical challenges at a time, when the continent is threatened on the eastern flank (Russian politics) and southern flank (immigration wave), when the EU and NATO are expanding, which divides the region into two parts and in the face of the crisis of European institutions and

Retezat Mountains (Southern Carpathians)

10 growing Euroscepticism. Close cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe is a necessary condition for protecting the political identity of the region, for the realisation of national interests and strengthening the subjectivity of sovereign states. Central and Eastern Europe is defined not only by the geographical criterion, but also by historical and political determinants. Historically, the major cultural features of the region have developed in the 14th and 15th centuries – the rise of sovereign monar- chies, the materialisation of the consequences of regional integration processes in the form of the Polish-Lithuanian Union, Scandinavian Unions and Hungarian-Croatian Un- ion. Political thinking in the categories of Central and Eastern Europe, as a region lying between the Adriatic, Baltic and Black seas, began to crystallise in the first decades of the 20th century. This was a response to the German concept of Mitteleuropa, Russian Pan-Slavism and international Bolshevism. There are 30 countries in Central and Eastern Europe, which lie along the North- South axis, between Germany and Russia. What they all have in common, is: 1) the feeling of being a borderland in the political and cultural sense comparing to the West; 2) recollections of subjectivity and sovereignty lost to superpowers; 3) the prominence of categories such as freedom, independence and nation in public debate; 4) the percep- tion of nations as ethnic and cultural communities; 5) unaided absorption and modernisation of political and philosophical trends developed in Western Europe; 6) the volatility of states and their borders; 7) underexploited national potential (dependent development) comparing to their past glory days. There are more than 150 million people living in Central and Eastern Europe. They are a majority group in the European Union, whose members (16 out of 28) generated a GDP worth more than US $ 5 billion in 2014, which accounted for about 27% of total

11 Legend borders of the countries of the Carpathian region

Countries of the Carpathian region in the Central-Eastern Europe

EU GDP. This potential is a relatively significant political asset in the European Union and NATO, as well as vis-à-vis the Russian Federation or China. It makes Central and Eastern Europe the second pillar of European integration after Western Europe. The “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative is one of regional cooperation platforms, which should be harmoniously tied into projects inspired by the concept of Intermarium or the ABC region (Adriatic, Baltic and Black seas). The strength of the “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative is that it is based on concrete interests, transit routes, social needs, community cohesion and ability to cooperate. The Carpathians no longer mark the borders or split Central and European Union, but are factor contributing to building the community. The implementation of the “Europe of the Carpathians” initiative has not only made it possible to overcome the habit of treating the Carpathians as a geographical concept, but also gave them a social, political, cultural and economic meaning.

12 Documents of Europe of the Carpathians

Framework Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathians, 22 May 2003 (Preamble)

“The Parties”, Acknowledging that the Carpathians are a unique natural treasure of great beauty and ecological value, an important reservoir of biodiversity, the headwaters of major rivers, an essential habitat and refuge for many endangered species of plants and animals and Europe’s largest area of virgin forests, and aware that the Carpathians constitute a major ecological, economic, cultural, recreational and living environment in the heart of Europe, shared by numerous peoples and countries; Realizing the importance and ecological, cultural and socio-economic value of mountain regions, which prompted the United Nations General Assembly to declare 2002 the International Year of Mountains; Recognizing the importance of Mountain areas, as enshrined in Chapter 13 (Sustainable Mountain Development) of the Declaration on Environment and Development (“Agenda 21”, Rio de Janeiro, 1992), and in the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development; Recalling the Declaration on Environment and Sustainable Development in the Carpathian and Danube Region (Bucharest, 2001); Noting the pertinent provisions of and principles enshrined in relevant global, regional and sub-regional environmental legal instruments, strategies and programmes; Aiming at ensuring a more effective implementation of such already existing instruments, and building upon other international programmes; Recognizing that the Carpathians constitute the living environment for the local people, and acknowledging the contribution of the local people to sustainable social, cultural and economic development, and to preserving traditional knowledge in the Carpathians; Acknowledging the importance of sub-regional cooperation for the protection and sustainable development of the Carpathians in the context of the ‘Environment for Europe’ process; Recognizing the experience gained in the framework of the Convention on the Protection of the Alps (Salzburg, 1991) as a successful model for the protection of the environment and sustainable development of mountain regions, providing a sound basis for new partnership initiatives and further strengthening of cooperation between Alpine and Carpathian states; Being aware of the fact that efforts to protect, maintain and sustainably manage the natural resources of the Carpathians cannot be achieved by one country alone and require regional cooperation, and of the added value of transboundary cooperation in achieving ecological coherence; Have agreed as follows […]

13 Carpathian Memorandum, 8 September 2011

The Carpathians constitute an important part of Europe’s regional heritage. It is an area of substantial social, cultural and natural resources, but at the same time one of the poorest and least recognized regions which requires coordinated support under European policy. The Carpathians are characterized by several important assets: First, they connect, beyond the present European Union borders, the territories of strategic importance – from the very core of Central Europe: Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, through Ukraine, to the Balkans including Romania and Serbia. Second, they are a unique treasure of the natural environment, being a “green backbone” of Central and Eastern Europe. Third, it is a region of cultural and social importance, inhabited by 20 million people. The Carpathians are also a region fraught with problems. Its major weaknesses are as follows: gaps in infrastructure with regard to transport as well as environmental safety, lack of due care of sustainable development, social problems, including areas characterized by high unemployment. If we do not take coordinated development-oriented measures, social and economic problems of the Carpathian region will increase. Therefore, we are of the opinion that efforts of the states, the European Union and regional authorities should be combined in order to work out a joint strategy for the Carpathians, which would enable to overcome the weaknesses of the region, while making use of its assets. Such strategy, following the Baltic Sea Strategy and the Danube Strategy, should be primarily based on synergy between the existing initiatives and measures taken in this region, thereby constituting value added, without leading to the establishment of new structures, regulations or institutions. We want to seek financing for measures in the Carpathians area in a coordinated manner so that funds, in particular those obtained from the Community budget, are not dispersed but strategically targeted at joint Carpathian projects. The mechanism for financing joint measures aimed at Carpathian development might be created based on the models provided by the present EU macro-regional development strategies as well as such initiatives as the European Programme “Alpine Space”. The number of the existing good practices and initiatives in the Carpathian region makes us confident that, provided there is an appropriately drawn-up strategy, we may in a relatively short time bring about the desired, specific effects of the new initiative, be it with regard to academic (“Carpathian University”), environmental, or infrastructural cooperation or in an inter-regional project “Carpathian Horizon”. Such cooperation will, in particular, lead to closer links between EU member states and Ukraine, thereby contributing to faster integration of the country into European structures. The first step that might symbolically, but also practically prove the involvement of the European policy in the Carpathian region would be accession of the European Union, as a party, to the Carpathian Convention whose signatories are at present individual states. Having acquired such capacity pursuant to the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union should make use of it in such initiatives. Our common objective is to draw up a new macro-regional development strategy as early as in the next financing framework 2014–2020. This is possible, if support is provided by major European policy actors at the level of subsequent presidencies as well as the European Commission and the European Parliament. We appeal for such involvement. The Carpathians are worthy of the European strategy.

14 Proposals Adopted at the Conference “Europe of the Carpathians”, 4–6 September 2012 (fragments)

1. The Carpathians are a region of importance on the European scale. Support for development- oriented measures in the Carpathians may be a stimulus to EU growth. 2. Cooperation between national parliaments in the framework of the “Carpathian Network of Parliamentary Cooperation” should become an important link in Carpathian cooperation. 3. Local entrepreneurship connected with common good should have priority over multinational investors. 4. The Carpathian natural environment is part of the European heritage. In order to better protect it, the European Union should accede to the Carpathian Convention as a party.

Krasiczyn Declaration, 23 February 2013

We, the participants of the “Europe of the Carpathians” conference in Krasiczyn, share the belief that the Carpathians are an important part of the European regional heritage. With its unique features, the Carpathians are today one of the two major mountain regions of Europe. After the recent enlargement of the European Union, they also form its eastern border, which significantly raises the importance of the area in ensuring sustainable development and cohesion of the EU. Nowadays, the inhabitants of the Carpathian macro-region must face a number of difficulties. Without specific developmental measures, the situation of the Carpathian population will continue to deteriorate due to the absence of transport infrastructure and visible social gaps, including a high rate of structural unemployment. Action for the modernisation and development of the Carpathian macro-region is essential not only from the point of view of selected Member States, but the entire European Union, particularly in the context of its future enlargement to the east, which is why we want to support Ukraine’s European aspirations. We believe it is necessary to coordinate actions for the Carpathians in many areas. The essence of these actions should be to consolidate international, regional and cross-border cooperation in the economic, social and cultural dimensions, so that the macro-region can present a coherent development vision in the European Union. Only a joint effort of societies, parliaments, governments and local authorities of the Carpathian countries will offer opportunities for effective promotion of Carpathian interests on the European forum. National parliaments could play an important role here by creating the Carpathian Network of Parliamentary Cooperation. Such a network should enable regular contacts between parliamentarians from the Carpathian countries in all areas of their interest. An important step towards the creation of such a network will be the establishment of Carpathian parliamentary groups in individual national parliaments and in the European Parliament and, in the future, considering the establishment of a Carpathian parliamentary assembly. We would like to emphasise the importance of the Association of the Carpathian Euroregion as an institution coordinating and stimulating activity for the development of this region. We support the call for the creation of a trans-national operational programme of European Territorial Cooperation for the Carpathian Euroregion for 2014–2020 under the name “Carpathian Horizon 2020”. Such a solution would contribute to improving the coordination and enhancing the effectiveness of the existing EU financial instruments supporting multilateral territorial cooperation. This programme should cover all territories which decide to join it.

15 At the same time, we call upon the European Union to more actively support the objectives laid down in the Carpathian Convention, signed in Kiev on 23 May 2003, and to expedite activities aimed at formal accession of the EU to that convention as a party. In particular, it is necessary to strengthen cooperation with respect to water and forest management. We also recognise the importance of completing the tasks specified in the Protocol on sustainable tourism to the Carpathian Convention. We welcome numerous examples of cross-border cooperation of partners from the Carpathian countries. We consider that starting work on publishing the Carpathian Encyclopaedia is an extremely valuable initiative. To this end, we are establishing a working group of representatives of several universities interested in Carpathian-related issues. We are attentively tracking the progress of the renovation of the former Astronomical Observatory on the peak of Pop Ivan in the Chornohora range and the construction of an academic cooperation centre in Mykulychyn. Both initiatives are operated jointly by the University of Warsaw and the Precarpathian National University in Ivano-Frankivsk. We note the common shepherd traditions, which have belonged to the basic activities of the Carpathian highlanders for many centuries. In this respect, an initiative worth spreading is this year’s international Carpathian Sheep Transhumance 2013 as a traditional sheep migration starting from Romania, and passing through Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Further expansion of border infrastructure will greatly facilitate the development of cooperation between the Carpathian countries belonging to the European Union and Ukraine. This is why we are strongly in favour of increasing the number of border crossings on Ukraine’s eastern border. Moreover, responding to unanimous demands and opinions of circles and institutions connected with the sector of public and private media operating in the Carpathian region, we declare our support for the initiative of creating an international platform for the cooperation of Carpathian media in order to promote, develop and implement effective information exchange systems. We would also like to emphasise that the main objective of all actions should be creating a European macro-regional development strategy for the Carpathians, with the involvement of all interested countries and regions, as well as European institutions. Drafting the strategy would be crucial for territorial cohesion and consolidating cooperation not only between the Carpathian countries and regions, but also between the European Union and its eastern partners. The main focus of the Macro- regional Carpathian Strategy (“Carpathia 2020” – CEEC – Co-operation, Economy, Environment, Culture) should be cooperation, including economic growth, environmental protection and culture. The inclusion of the “Via Carpathia” road in the trans-European transport networks TEN-T should be part of this strategy. The road, which runs through the eastern areas of the EU, should become a core around which sustainable development of the entire Carpathian macro-region would be wrapped.

Krynica Memorandum, 8 September 2013

The participants in the “Europe of the Carpathians” conference have resolved as follows: 1. To suggest to national parliaments that Carpathian parliamentary groups be formed. The next step might involve taking action to establish Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Central and Eastern Europe. The Assembly should become a forum of permanent cooperation between parliamentarians from the countries of the region. Its objective ought to be action for self-reliant development of Central and Eastern Europe. Due to their parliamentary nature, measures taken by the Assembly will unite politicians from different political divisions, thereby guaranteeing the stability of collaboration regardless of government changes.

16 2. To take action to set up inter-groups in the European Parliament that would be engaged in Carpathian cooperation. 3. To act on the European Union level and vis-à-vis Carpathian states’ governments, in order to promote and implement the concept of the EU macro-regional strategy for the Carpathian area. By combining development-oriented efforts of the EU, states and regions, the strategy should become a strong impulse for sustainable and dynamic growth of this part of Europe. We consider as particularly important the development of traditional sectors of the economy, agriculture, tourism, actions in favour of national culture and extension of the infrastructure connecting our countries. These priorities should be appropriately included in the operational programmes aimed at spending UE funds under financial perspective 2014–2020. 4. To support the idea of protecting the cultural and natural heritage and environment of the Carpathians through the Carpathian Convention, in particular to expand the impact of this initiative on other countries of the region and international organisations. 5. To act with the view to initiate regular meetings of intellectuals from Central and Eastern Europe whose goal would be to reflect on the European identity and to work on expanding and promoting the knowledge of our region. This initiative involves the idea of establishing the Carpathian University whose objective is to conduct research aimed at comprehensive development and to popularise it among academic and educational communities.

Krynica Declaration, 3 September 2014

The war in Ukraine is the greatest threat to security in Europe since the end of the cold war. The threat is due to the fact that once again, after the Russian-Georgian war in 2008, Russian aggression changes the borders using force and aims at recognizing it as a permanent status. Crimea annexation and occupation and entry of Russian troops in the territory of Eastern Ukraine are a violation of fundamental rules of international law, undermining the principle of territorial integrity and state sovereignty, which are the foundations of a state of peace in relations between countries. In this situation, not only peace in Ukraine but also security in Europe and maintenance of the rule of law and universal values on the continent depend, to a large extent, on the reaction of individual states, the entire Central and Eastern European region, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the European Union. Being passive about these facts is not a choice at all. Even today appeasement policy may lead to a catastrophe that once Europe went through 75 years ago. Therefore, the participants in the “Europe of the Carpathians” conference gathered in Krynica on 3 September 2014 definitely condemn Russian aggression policy, which destabilises Eastern Europe, and call upon the Trans-Atlantic community states to react consistently and adequately to this threat, inter alia, by expanding defence capacity of the allied states in Central and Eastern Europe. Today Ukraine is entitled to full support in any possible form it will request, whereas the joint Trans- Atlantic response to Russia should be strong enough to hold off its further aggression and to restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity, including Crimea. We appeal to the individual states in our region to find the way to a joint reaction characterized by solidarity to the war on Ukraine. We express our solidarity with all victims of the Crimea’s occupation and the war on Ukraine, in particular with families of the fallen soldiers.

17 Marek Kuchciński, Krzysztof Szczerski, Europe of the Carpathians, “Rzeczpospolita”, 6 September 2011, p. 10

The future of the European Union territorial development and achievement of our common goal, i.e. EU’s social and economic cohesion, while maintaining its great diversity, will increasingly depend on equal and integrated strengthening of competitiveness and innovation of the entire EU. The importance of this huge challenge for political and economic elites of the European states is increasing, if we take into account the pressure of globalisation, unfavourable climate and demographic change, the crisis of the European market and the undermining of sustainable development foundations. At the same time, we cannot and do not want in the European Union to give up the care of sustainable development understood as a “balance between the economy and ecology” and a “balance between the economy and social values”. Today, we clearly see that EU enlargement to take new member states launched numerous new initiatives, which enriched the thinking about socio-economic development of entire Europe, creating new incentives for such development, especially in territorial dimension. An example of that are macro-regional initiatives such as the Baltic Sea Strategy or the Danube Strategy showing the ability of the states in our region to cooperate at the macro-regional level. They indicate how important it is to combine in our thinking about development the potential of many states and EU, in order to produce the “development accumulation effect” around clearly defined objectives. From a macro-economic perspective, a strategic view does not only enable us to obtain additional value to the initiatives adopted so far under development policy but also encourages us to focus on the areas that might be considered as particularly important for the European Union. The Carpathian macro-region may be fully regarded as such area. It fulfils the criteria of macro-regional strategies decided on by the European Commission which considers this form of territorial development as particularly important in the next period of cohesion policy programming. The Carpathian macro-region complies with the definition criteria as it fully is an area connecting the “territories of various states and regions with common features and problems”. It covers a large part of Central Europe, South-Eastern Europe and the Balkans. The Carpathians are one of the largest mountain ranges in Europe (more extensive than the Alps), characterized by the greatest biodiversity, extending in an arc shape on more than 1500 km starting from Austria, through the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Ukraine which is part of the Eastern Partnership Programme, to Serbia. In Poland the Carpathians make up more than 6% of the country’s area and cover vast terrain concentrated in Silesia, Małopolska and Podkarpacie – from the Beskidy through the Tatras to the Bieszczady mountains. Called a green backbone of Central and Eastern Europe, this area is of strategic importance for many reasons. First, it is an area of extreme geopolitical significance and crucial for the South-Eastern direction of European policy. It connects European states of a triple status: EU member states, accession countries and those that are part of Eastern Partnership (ENP). It is the territory where numerous strategic political interests are involved. Following the last enlargement of EU, the Carpathians became its Eastern border, which increases the importance of the region and its stability for the entire Community. Second, it is an area of very rich culture and social diversity. It provides an excellent example of the European heritage of tradition which is linked with modernity. It is also a territory where numerous important economic initiatives were undertaken, inhabited by people with great entrepreneurial potential.

18 Third, it is one of the most important European environmental resources characterized by extraordinary nature heritage. It has enormous impact on the climate and hydrographic conditions of Central and Eastern European states, while landscape and spa features increase its attractiveness. At the same time, however, the area is fraught with serious problems and challenges that must be faced. Let us mention the most important two of those. Every year natural disasters (floods) occur in the Carpathians causing huge losses. In the Polish part of the Carpathians and at the foothills heavy flooding cause damage worth billions that the state is unable to repair. At the same time the Carpathians are the source of potable water that fulfils nearly 90% of Romania’s needs and 50% of Poland’s needs (the Vistula river basin). This is of fundamental importance for future generations, and appropriate water management must certainly be one of the pillars of macro-regional strategy in this area. The Carpathians are one of the least competitive regions in this part of Europe. The region covers the poorest parts of the present European Union and its neighbouring states; it requires investment in ecology, transport, support for local entrepreneurship, as well as consistent policy with respect to human resources, including migration. Of particular significance are initiatives targeted at transport integration of the area, enabling both its effective connection with the remaining parts of the continent and its internal integration (e.g. in Poland’s territory). Thus, the Carpathians are an area of strategic importance for the European Union and should be presented as a separate item in EU programmes. They require support in line with the frequently quoted rule of European solidarity understood as a capacity to share your wealth with others. As early as in 2003 the Carpathian states agreed on the scope of cooperation in a very good Carpathian Convention promulgated in Kiev, as a platform defining the framework, i.e. “general political objectives promoting an integrated approach to the protection and sustainable development of the Carpathians”. However, this does not diminish an impression that the macro-region stands in the European Union shadow. And it is reinforced by the fact that mountain problems of the Carpathians are not covered by any of multi-lateral forms of cooperation like that for the states of the Red Sea, the Baltic or the Danube. For all these reasons the development of the Carpathian Strategy seems justified. Following the Baltic Sea Strategy or the Danube Strategy, its objective should be to integrate the European Union instruments and action plans addressed to specific areas in the Carpathian macro- region, where (according to the findings arising out of the Carpathian Convention) many projects funded by the Community are already implemented, but not always effectively. There is potential and will of cooperation in the area, which are revealed in, unfortunately, dispersed political initiatives and practical actions on different levels. It is time the next step should be made. The Economic Forum in Krynica that begins on 7 September might provide a good opportunity for that. During the forum, in the framework of the parliamentary dimension of Polish Presidency of the European Union Council, the Sejm and Senate of the Republic of Poland organize a conference “Europe of the Carpathians”. It is to be the platform for a dialogue among the parties interested in the mountainous area development and regional cooperation both within EU and with its closest neighbours. In addition, its aim is to take joint international actions for the Carpathians development and make it possible to move the macro-region up in the hierarchy of European cooperation and development. Moreover, “Europe of the Carpathians” fits into the implementation of Polish Presidency priorities (Eastern Partnership, European integration of the Carpathian states, broadly understood security). At the same time, it is an opportune moment for this initiative as work on new regulations concerning development policy in the EU financial framework for 2014–2020 commenced. Therefore, an international discussion about the Carpathian Europe development may provide an opportunity to present at the EU level the objective to be unequivocally identified with Poland.

19 Politicians, scientists, experts involved in the initiative“ Europe of the Carpathians” 2011–2016

Andrzej Adamczyk, Minister of Infrastructure and Construction, Poland Włodzimierz Bernacki, Deputy to the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, President of the Polish Parliamentary Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Poland Oleksandr Bokotey, Director of the Institute of Ecological and Religious Studies at the Uzhhorod National University, Ukraine László Borbély, President of the Committee for Foreign Policy of the Chamber of Deputies of Romania, Romania Gordana Čomić, Vice-president of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, Serbia Mykhailo Dovbenko, Deputy to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Ukraine Richárd Hörcsik, Chairman of the Committee on European Affairs of the Hungarian National Assembly, Hungary Bohdan Hud´, head of the Department of European Integration at the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Ukraine Ján Hudacký, Deputy to the National Council of the Slovak Republic (2010–2016), former Secretary of State in the Ministry of Development of Slovakia (2010–2012), Slovakia Erika Jurinová, Deputy to the National Council of the Slovak Republic, former Vice-President of the National Council of the Slovak Republic (2012–2016), Slovakia Stanisław Karczewski, Marshal of the Senate of the Republic of Poland, Poland Mykhailo Khariy, representative of the citizens’ initiative “European Choice”, coordinator of the of National Forum Transformation of Ukraine, Ukraine Marek Kuchciński, Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Poland Jerzy Kwieciński, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Development, Poland Dawid Lasek, Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Sport and Tourism, Poland Gerwazy Longher, Deputy to the Chamber of Deputies of Romania, Romania

20 Pavol Macala, Member of the Board of the Scientific Association Personalism in Slovakia, Slovakia Jan Malicki, Director of the Centre for East European Studies of the University of Warsaw, Poland Markijan Malskyj, head of the Department of International Relationships and Diplomatic Service at the Ivan Franko National University in Lviv, Ambassador of Ukraine in the Republic of Poland (2010–2014), Ukraine Anatoli Matviienko, Deputy to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Ukraine Piotr Naimski, Secretary of State in the Chancellery of Prime Minister, Government’s Plenipotentiary for Strategic Energy Infrastructure, Poland Zoltán Németh, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hungarian National Assembly, Hungary Władysław Ortyl, Marshal of Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Poland Waldemar Paruch, advisor to Marshal of the Sejm, Poland Josef Polačko, Chairman of the Board of the Association of Carpathian Euroregion Slovakia – North, Slovakia Tomasz Poręba, Deputy to the European Parliament, Poland Bohdan Prots, the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Ukraine Mykola Shershun, Deputy to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (2002–2006, 2007–2012), Co-President of the Working Committee for Cross-Border Cooperation and Environment Protection of the Interparliamentary Assembly of Ukraine and the Republic of Poland (2007–2012), Ukraine Přemysl Sobotka, Vice-President of the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic, President of the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic (2004–2010), Czech Republic Bogusław Sonik, Deputy to the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Poland Krzysztof Szczerski, Secretary of State in the Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland, Poland Jan Szyszko, Minister of Environment, Poland Ryszard Terlecki, Vice-Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Poland Igor Tsependa, Rector of the Vasyl Stefanyk Precarpathian National University in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine Magda Vášáryová, Deputy to the National Council of the Slovak Republic (2006–2016), Ambassador of the Slovak Republic in Poland (2000–2005), Slovakia Mihailo Vyshyvaniuk, former Chairman of the Ivano-Frankivsk Regional Public Administration (1997–2005, 2010–2013), Ukraine Oksana Yurynets, Deputy to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Ukraine Janusz Zaleski, former Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Environment, former Chief Nature Conservator (2009–2014), Poland

21 Calendar of “Europe of the Carpathians”

22 V 2003 – Kiev, drawing up Framework Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathians 27 II 2006 – signing the Carpathian Convention by the President of the Republic of Poland Lech Kaczyński 19 VI 2006 – entry into force of the Carpathian Convention in the Republic of Poland 30 XI 2007 – first meeting of the Parliamentarians from the Carpathian states, initiated by the Chair of the Environment Protection, Natural Resources and Forestry Committee of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, Deputy Marek Kuchciński 26 II 2011 – 1st International Conference “Europe of the Carpathians” in Przemyśl 25 VI 2011 – 2nd International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Nowy Targ entitled Europe Rich with the Carpathians 7–8 IX 2011 – 3rd International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” during the Economic Forum in Krynica Zdrój, 7 September 2011 – adoption of the Carpathian Memorandum 25 II 2012 – 4th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krasiczyn near Przemyśl 6–9 VII 2012 – the meeting on the development of Carpathian cooperation in Yaremche, Ukraine 6 IX 2012 – adoption of the Proposals on Expanding Carpathian Cooperation at the 5th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krynica Zdrój 23 II 2013 – adoption of the Krasiczyn Declaration at the 6th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krasiczyn near Przemyśl 8 IX 2013 – adoption of the Krynica Memorandum at the 7th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krynica Zdrój 29–30 XI 2013 – meeting on the development of Carpathian cooperation in Sárospatak, Hungary 3 IX 2014 – adoption of the Krynica Declaration at the 8th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krynica Zdrój 27–28 II 2015 – 9th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krasiczyn near Przemyśl 25 VII 2015 – 10th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Smerek near Wetlina 9 IX 2015 – 11th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Krynica Zdrój 29 II 2016 – 12th International Conference ”Europe of the Carpathians” in Przemyśl 22 Text Professor Waldemar Paruch

Design and layout Zdzisław Byczek, Hubert Sander

Editor Katarzyna Chrzanowska

© Copyright by CARPATHIANS Maps: Kancelaria Sejmu Carpathian region, project of the Via Carpathia Warszawa 2016 EUROPE communication route, Carpathian region OF THE CARPATHIANS countries in the CEE – drawings by 23 ISBN 978-83-7666-480-4 Wydawnictwo Sejmowe A. Leśkiewicz

EuropaKarpat-okl-en.indd 1 22.08.2016 11:19 Text Professor Waldemar Paruch

Design and layout Zdzisław Byczek, Hubert Sander

Editor Katarzyna Chrzanowska

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