The Fiftieth General Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) will be held in Kyiv, on 28-30 November 2017, at the invitation of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
The Kyiv Session will be attended by the parliamentary delegations of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine.
The Assembly will be chaired by Liudmyla Denysova, the PABSEC Vice-President, Head of the UA Permanent Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation.
The Plenary Session will discuss the “Development of Economic Cooperation in the Context of Security Crisis in the Black Sea Region”, as the main topic of the General Debate, and will debate the Reports and Recommendations drafted by the PABSEC Committees during their autumn meetings: “Development of the National Innovation System in the BSEC Member States”, “The 25 Years of the PABSEC: Enhancement of the Inter-parliamentary Cooperation in the Region” and “Social Protection and Benefits for the Young Families in the BSEC Member States”.
On November 29 and 30, there will be plenary meetings of the PABSEC GA at the Debating Chamber of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
At the grand opening of the PABSEC GA Plenary Session, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Andriy Parubiy shall deliver his complimentary address. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin is also expected to perform before the audience.
During the November 30 sitting, there will be elections of the PABSEC head’s deputies.
At the closing ceremony of the Plenary Session of the Fiftieth General Assembly of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Andriy Parubiy shall deliver his closing speech.
Worthy of note
What PABSEC is?
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC) was created as a result of the major political changes of the late 1980’s, when the nations of the Black Sea Region re-emerged on the world scene. The search of the countries of the region for ways of meeting the challenges regarding the national development and the European integration paved the way for combining their efforts aiming at turning the Black Sea Region into an area of stability, prosperity and peace. Taking advantage of common denominators such as geographic proximity and shared cultural and historical heritage, the countries of the region have expedited the establishment of bilateral and multilateral relations.
The Summit Declaration of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and the Bosphorus Statement, signed in Istanbul, on the 25th of June 1992, defined the basic principles and objectives of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), formally instituting a new regional cooperation process with the participation of eleven countries: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Republic of Moldova, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine. Serbia and Montenegro joined the PABSEC in 2004, becoming the twelfth Member State. In 2006, after Montenegro declared its independence, the Republic of Serbia became the legal successor of the former state, both in the BSEC and in the PABSEC.
On the 26th of February 1993, in Istanbul, the Speakers of the Parliaments of nine countries – Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Republic of Moldova, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine – adopted the Declaration on the Establishment of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC). In June 1995, Greece joined the Assembly as the tenth full-fledged member. Bulgaria became the eleventh full-fledged member, in June 1997. In November 2004, Serbia and Montenegro joined the Assembly, thus becoming the twelfth full-fledged member. The Parliamentary Assembly is composed of 76 parliamentarians representing the twelve BSEC Member States.