Euroregion Baltic

Last updated

Euroregion Baltic
AbbreviationERB
Formation1998
Type Euroregion
Headquarters Elbląg, Poland
Region served
South Baltic Sea
Official language
English, Russian
President
 Per Ole Petersen
Vice President
 Vytautas Grubliauskas
Website euroregionbaltic.eu

The Euroregion Baltic (ERB) refers to a cross-border Euroregion in the south-east of the Baltic Sea Region, consisting of eight regions of Denmark, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, and Sweden. On 2 March 2022, the ERB's Executive Board suspended Russia's membership, in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. [1]

Contents

The ERB was the first Euroregion to formally include a partner from Russia through its inclusion of the Kaliningrad Oblast (a Russian exclave). It comprises regions from both old and new member states of the European Union.

History

The idea of establishing the Euroregion Baltic was developed in the mid-1990s by local politicians and entrepreneurs from south-east Sweden and north-east Poland.[ citation needed ] Organizational works started at an international conference held in Malbork between 28 Feb – 1 March 1997.[ citation needed ] The representatives of regions participating in the conference decided to establish the Organizational Committee, whose task was to lay the foundations of the future Euroregion.[ citation needed ] The working name of the Euroregion was "Jantar" [2] or "Amber", but it was later changed to "Baltic", as it underlined common cultural and historical heritage as well as geographical location of the participating regions. [3]

The Committee convened for the first time on 17 November 1997.[ citation needed ] On 22 February 1998 in Malbork, Poland, the Agreement on Establishing the Euroregion 'Baltic' [4] was signed by representatives of regions from six countries including: the Bornholm County (Denmark), Liepāja (Latvia), Klaipėda County, cities of Klaipėda, Palanga and Neringa (Lithuania), Elbląg, Gdańsk, Słupsk and Olsztyn provinces, (Poland), representatives of the Association of Municipalities of Kaliningrad Region (Russia), Blekinge City and Kalmar County and Kronoberg County (Sweden). [5]

The first ERB conference on strategy took place in Brussels on 11 June 2008 and was attended by representatives of the European Parliament, Swedish Government, DG Regio, Committee of the Regions, Baltic Development Forum, ScanBalt, Helsinki Commission and Baltic Sea Chambers of Commerce Association.[ citation needed ] The participants had the opportunity to hear about the Strategy in more detail while it was still being developed and contribute to the process with their views. [6]

On 20 November 2008 the Euroregion Baltic Council adopted a position on the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region in which it welcomed and supported its main objectives. [7]

After Russia attacked Ukraine on 24 February 2022, Kaliningrad has been excluded from cooperation in the region. [1]

Member regions

Currently the Euroregion Baltic's active membership consists of seven regions from four countries; additionally, Russia's Kaliningrad region is a suspended member.

RegionSovereign stateLand area (km2)PopulationGDP (MEUR) [8] Unemployment (%) PPP per inhabitant (%)
Blekinge Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 2 947151 9004 9585.9 [9] 110.9
Bornholm Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 58842 9131 3319.090.3
Kalmar Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 11 219233 8347 1135.6 [10] 103.2
Kaliningrad (suspended)Flag of Russia.svg  Russia 15 125 [11] 937 353 [11] 4 054 [12] 10.7 [13] –
Klaipėda Flag of Lithuania.svg  Lithuania 5 209378 8433 2807.260.6
Pomerania Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 18 2932 210 92017 7276.4 [14] 54
Kronoberg Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 8 467180 7876 0944.7 [15] 106.7
Warmia–Masuria Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 24 1921 426 1558 6578.5 [14] 41

Organisational structure

ERB structure prior to the 2010 reform ERB organisational scheme.JPG
ERB structure prior to the 2010 reform

Following the implementation of the strategic review of ERB cooperation, the organisational structure has been significantly reformed in order for the ERB to be able to fulfil the new objectives set out by the ERB 2020 Agenda. Therefore, the decision was made to dissolve the ERB Council which for more than 12 years had been the highest legislative body within the Euroregion. According to the previous ERB Statutes, the Council consisted of up to eight representatives appointed by each Party of the Agreement and all the members of the Youth Board. The Council debated in sessions while its decisions were based on consensus. [16] Apart from the Council, the ERB member regions decided to dissolve all Working Groups and replace them with ad hoc Task Forces. Currently four ERB Task Forces are being operational. As a result of the introduction of the new organisational structure, ERB should become more flexible, effective and quicker to take decisions and capable of taking strategic actions. [17]

Executive Board

Current organisational structure of ERB ERB organisational structure 2010.JPG
Current organisational structure of ERB

Since 29 October 2010 the Executive Board of the Euroregion Baltic is the highest decision-making body of the organisation. According to the new Statutes adopted by Council on that day, the Executive Board consists of up to two representatives of the highest possible political rank and one permanent deputy nominated by each member organisation and the Chairperson of the Youth Board. [18] The Board debates during formal meetings which may be ordinary or extraordinary. The meetings are held in English and in public unless the Board decides otherwise. Ordinary meetings must take place at least three times a year and they are summoned by the ERB President. Extraordinary meetings may take place at any time decided upon by the Board. [19] Decisions of the Board are based on consensus and each member organisation as well as the Chair of the Youth Board all have one vote. The Board has the right to initiate and adopt changes to the ERB Statutes; prepare and approve long-term programmes, biennial actions plans and other strategic documents; prepare, adopt and implement resolutions, joint statements and positions; elect ERB President and Vice-President; approve annual activity reports from the ERB President; approve annual activity and financial reports from the International Permanent Secretariat and the Youth Board; decide on enlarging of the ERB territory and approve withdrawal or suspension of the Parties; establish ad hoc task forces; confer the title of the ERB honorary membership. [20]

The Executive Board also initiates the organisation of the ERB Annual Forum of Stakeholders. The idea of the Forum, which is not a decision-making body, is to create a meeting platform facilitating discussion of relevant stakeholders from member organisations. The Forum is the arena for presenting opinions and interests of all ERB stakeholders such as member organisations, local communities, authorities, and also representatives of external organisations (leading politicians and high-ranking civil servants, national and EU representatives, experts and practitioners of territorial cooperation). The main goal of the Forum is to discuss important issues related to the ERB cooperation, in particular those concerning the European Union, Baltic Sea Region or EU – Russia relations. The Forum is responsible for formulating general recommendations for the ERB cooperation which then can be taken into account by the Executive Board. [21]

President

The President of Euroregion Baltic chairs the meetings of the Executive Board and is the highest representative of the Euroregion. [22] The President is authorised by the Executive Board to represent ERB externally and act on its behalf. As the Chair of the Executive Board, the President is assisted by the International Permanent Secretariat and ERB regional secretariats. The ERB Presidency and Vice-Presidency are held for one year and it rotates around all of the National Parties of the ERB cooperation who subsequently recommend their candidates to be finally approved by the ERB Executive Board. [23]

Previous ERB Presidencies:

International Permanent Secretariat (IPS) and Regional Secretariats

The ERB International Permanent Secretariat and Regional Secretariats are administrative bodies of the Euroregion which are responsible for daily management and coordination of ERB cooperation. The IPS is responsible for submitting periodical financial reports to the Board; assisting the President in submitting to the Board annual activity and financial reports; assisting the President and Vice-President in submitting to the Board the biennial action plan of the ERB cooperation; keeping regular contacts with Regional Secretariats; maintaining close working relations with the member organisations; preparing meetings for the Board; maintaining internal and external correspondence and conducting promotion and information dissemination activities. [25] The IPS is currently hosted by the Regional Council of Southern Småland which is seated in Växjö, Sweden. Regional Secretariats are established in each ERB member organisation and serve as a liaison between the International Permanent Secretariat and member organisations. [26]

Main focus areas

In 2010 ERB has undergone a strategic review of cooperation which resulted in a series of new documents outlining new objectives and focus areas. According to the revised ERB Statutes, the main goals of ERB is to undertake joint initiatives aiming at strengthening and promoting cooperation among the local and regional authorities within ERB, as well as contributing to the sustainable development of the Baltic Sea Region, with particular attention to the South Baltic area. The Euroregion also represents and promotes common interests of its member organisations and acts on their behalf towards the national, European and international institutions, and is responsible for implementing strategic initiatives complementing local and regional agendas of the member organisations, and pursuing organised exchange activities. [27]

Lobbying activities

Lobbying activities aim at strengthening ERB lobbying activities towards the European Union and taking an active role in the shaping of EU policies such as EU Cohesion Policy, EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, Europe 2020 Strategy, TEN-T Policy, Rural Development Policy, EU – Russia Cooperation and Eastern Partnership. These activities are initiated by the Executive Board which is authorised to established dedicated ad hoc task forces responsible for planning and executing lobbying activities. In achieving these goals, ERB cooperates closely with the European Commission, European Parliament, Committee of the Regions, national governments, Baltic organisations, as well as with the regional offices in Brussels. [28]

In order to facilitate the successful implementation of the lobbying activities, on 28 October 2010 ERB Council decided to create three ad hoc task forces. The Task Force on EU Cohesion Policy is responsible for monitoring the preparation of future EU Cohesion Policy and will actively promote a greater role of its objective 3 – European Territorial Cooperation. The Task Force on the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region will be analysing the current implementation of the Strategy and prepare a draft position on the Strategy's review process and including a lobby plan. Finally, the Task Force on the Annual Forum of ERB Stakeholders is in charge of preparing and organising the Annual Forum in 2011. [29]

Strategic actions

This focus area ERB is designed to upgrade the added value of cooperation by enabling networking among ERB partners and providing complementarity with the regional development strategies. It also aims at strengthening the vitality of ERB cooperation through involving high political representatives of the regions and other important stakeholders. The ERB 2020 Agenda sets out three strategic objectives within this area:

The ERB Joint Development Programme is an important element of ERB cooperation. It continues to be implemented by the organisation. Under the new guidelines, each partners of ERB cooperation will define which JDP actions shall be selected for realisation. Currently, the organisation provides support to the ERB Water Forum and assists the Pomorskie region in its efforts to resubmit the BaltNet project to the South Baltic Cross-border Cooperation Programme. [31]

The second objective includes the investigation of a possible status of a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC) on the condition that it covers all the ERB partners and aims at involving more intensively experts in the our work with the long-term objective of building a think-tank capacity of Euroregion Baltic. Within this objective ERB also supports the Youth Board in developing a flagship project proposal to the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. [32]

With regards to the third objective, ERB will mainly support the development of other platforms of cooperation by serving as a match-making point and information broker in such areas as the triple-helix cooperation, labour mobility, maritime safety, environmental protection and energy saving, promotion of investments in transport infrastructure and facilitating border crossing with the Kaliningrad Region. [33]

Exchange activities

These activities aim at deepening relations between the ERB member regions and strengthening cooperation through a collaborative approach to common problems. The exchange activities include: maintaining continuous exchange of information for the benefit of ERB members, gathering and disseminating information about existing Baltic initiatives, taking actions aiming at deepening relations between ERB communities; collecting information on the needs of communes and local communities regarding cross-border cooperation and the existing resources of this cooperation. [34]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Council of the Baltic Sea States</span> Intergovernmental organization

The Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) is a regional intergovernmental organisation working on three priority areas:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltic region</span> Geographical region in Europe

The Baltic Sea Region, alternatively the Baltic Rim countries, and the Baltic Sea countries/states, refers to the general area surrounding the Baltic Sea, including parts of Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. Unlike the "Baltic states", the Baltic region includes all countries that border the sea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Dimension</span> International policy

The Northern Dimension (ND) is a joint policy between four equal partners – the European Union, Russia, Norway and Iceland – regarding the cross-border and external policies geographically covering Northwest Russia, the Baltic Sea and the Arctic regions, including the Barents Region. The ND Policy was initiated in 1999 and renewed in 2006. The Northern Dimension addresses the specific challenges and opportunities arising in those regions and aims to strengthen dialogue and cooperation between the EU and its member states, the northern countries associated with the EU under the European Economic Area and Russia. A particular emphasis is placed on subsidiarity, and on ensuring the active participation of all stakeholders in the North, including regional organizations, local and regional authorities, the academic and business communities, and civil society.

The European Geography Association (EGEA) is an association encouraging European students to engage with geography through hands-on learning experiences. EGEA provides exchange programs and excursions to facilitate connection between European students and others from across the globe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Energy Community</span> International cooperative community

The Energy Community, commonly referred to as the Energy Community for South East Europe (ECSEE), is an international organization consisting of the European Union (EU) and a number of non-EU countries. It aims to extend the EU internal energy market to wider Southeast Europe. The members commit to implement relevant EU energy acquis communautaire, to develop an adequate regulatory framework and to liberalize their energy markets in line with the acquis under the founding Treaty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River</span> International environmental organisation

The International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR) is an international organisation with its permanent secretariat in Vienna. It was established by the Danube River Protection Convention, signed by the Danube countries in Sofia, Bulgaria, in 1994.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltic Assembly</span> Multinational regional organisation

The Baltic Assembly (BA) is a regional organisation that promotes intergovernmental cooperation between Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. It attempts to find a common position in relation to many international issues, including economic, political and cultural issues. The decisions of the assembly are advisory.

Interreg is a series of programmes to stimulate cooperation between regions in and out of the European Union (EU), funded by the European Regional Development Fund. The first Interreg started in 1989. Interreg IV covered the period 2007–2013. Interreg V (2014–2020) covers all 27 EU member states, the EFTA countries, six accession countries and 18 neighbouring countries. It has a budget of EUR 10.1 billion, which represents 2.8% of the total of the European Cohesion Policy budget. Since the non EU countries don't pay EU membership fee, they contribute directly to Interreg, not through ERDF.

A cross-border region is a territorial entity that is made of several local or regional authorities that are co-located yet belong to different nation states. Cross-border regions exist to take advantage of geographical conditions to strengthen their competitiveness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North–South Centre</span> Building in Lisbon, Portugal

The North–South Centre, officially the European Centre for Global Interdependence and Solidarity, is a Partial Agreement of the Council of Europe, the oldest political organisation of European states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions</span>

European Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (EUROSAI) is a European intergovernmental organization whose members are supreme audit institutions in their respective countries. It is one of the seven regional working groups of the International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union for the Mediterranean</span> Intergovernmental organization

The Union for the Mediterranean is an intergovernmental organization of 43 member states from Europe and the Mediterranean Basin: the 27 EU member states and 16 Mediterranean partner countries from North Africa, Western Asia and Southern Europe. It was founded on 13 July 2008 at the Paris Summit for the Mediterranean, with an aim of reinforcing the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership (Euromed) that was set up in 1995 as the Barcelona Process. Its general secretariat is located in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.

The Baltic Development Forum is an independent think-tank and non-profit high-level and agenda-setting networking organisation with strategic partners and sponsors from large companies, major cities, institutional investors, business associations and academia in the Baltic Sea Region. The network involves more than 8,000 decision-makers from all over the region and beyond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pyrenees–Mediterranean Euroregion</span> Political cooperation organisation

The Pyrenees–Mediterranean Euroregion (EPM) is a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC). Founded in 2004, it is a political cooperation organisation between the Generalitat of Catalonia, the Government of the Balearic Islands and the Occitanie / Pyrénées-Méditerranée Region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EU–LAC Foundation</span> International organisation

The European Union – Latin America and Caribbean Foundation(EU–LAC Foundation) is an international organisation created in 2010 by the Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU), Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) with the mission of strengthening and promoting the strategic partnership between both regions, improving its visibility and encouraging the participation of the respective civil societies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean</span>

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean (PAM) is an international organization established in 2005 by the national parliaments of the countries of the Euro-Mediterranean region. It is the legal successor of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM), launched in the early 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Alps-Adriatic Working Group</span> Organization

Working Community of Cantons, Provinces, Counties, Regions and Republics of East Alpine Region or The Alps-Adriatic Working Group is an international organization that promotes co-operation between the states of the Eastern Alps and the Northern Adriatic region in the field of tourism, environmental protection, culture, science, politics, economy and European integration. The initiative to establish the group came from Italy and the body was founded in Venice in 1978. It initially served as a common forum for subnational units of Austria, Italy and Yugoslavia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference</span> Forum for political dialogue

The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) was established in 1991 as a forum for political dialogue between parliamentarians from the Baltic Sea Region. BSPC aims at raising awareness and opinion on issues of current political interest and relevance for the Baltic Sea Region. It promotes and drives various initiatives and efforts to support a sustainable environmental, social and economic development of the Baltic Sea Region. It strives at enhancing the visibility of the Baltic Sea Region and its issues in a wider European context.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern Baltic Sea Parliamentary Forum</span> Forum

The Southern Baltic Sea Parliamentary Forum was founded in 2004 as a forum for the regional parliaments of Schleswig-Holstein, Hamburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern), West Pomerania (Westpommern), Pomerania (Pommern), Warmia-Masuria (Ermland-Masuren) and the administrative district of Kaliningrad. The regional parliament of the southern Swedish province Schonen is an associated Member.

Baltic Sea States Sub-regional Co-operation, BSSSC is an international network associating local governments and local government organizations of the countries around the Baltic Sea. It was established in 1993 under the Stavanger Declaration as a result of the establishing Council of the Baltic Sea States a year earlier.

References

  1. 1 2 "Executive Board Meeting Minutes" (PDF). Euroregion Baltic. 10 March 2022. p. 13.
  2. ↑ Jantar means amber in old Polish language.
  3. ↑ Koszyk-Białobrzeska, Renata & Kisiel, Roman (2008). Euroregionalna współpraca i integracja na przykładzie euroregionu Bałtyk, p. 77. Olsztyn. ISBN   978-83-89112-29-3
  4. ↑ "Agreement on Establishing the Euroregion 'Baltic'" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  5. ↑ "Ibid" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  6. ↑ "Euroregion Baltic" . Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  7. ↑ "ERB Position on the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region of 20 November 2008" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  8. ↑ Gross domestic product (GDP) at current market prices at NUTS level 2 and 3. Data for ERB regions within EU borders obtained from Eurostat Database http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/statistics/search_database.
  9. ↑ "Blekinge län - SE221". Inštitútu zamestnanosti. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  10. ↑ "Kalmar län - SE213". Inštitútu zamestnanosti. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  11. 1 2 Euroregiony na granicach Polski 2007
  12. ↑ "Экономика". gov39.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 13 November 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2010.
  13. ↑ "Economic development: economy starts to recover by the end of 2009" (PDF). May 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
  14. 1 2 "Unemployment in the EU27 in 2009" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 November 2010. Retrieved 19 November 2010.
  15. ↑ "Kronobergs län - SE212". Inštitútu zamestnanosti. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  16. ↑ "Previous ERB Statutes" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2010.
  17. ↑ Euroregion Baltic 2020 Agenda
  18. ↑ "Euroregion Baltic" . Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  19. ↑ Statutes of Euroregion Baltic Archived 27 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine , § 4
  20. ↑ "Ibid" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 January 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  21. ↑ Euroregion Baltic 2020 Agenda, pp. 7–8
  22. ↑ Statutes of Euroregion Baltic Archived 27 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine , § 5.
  23. ↑ Euroregion Baltic 2020 Agenda, p. 7
  24. ↑ Minutes of the ERB Executive Board meeting of 21 February 2011 Archived 5 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine , pp. 1–2
  25. ↑ Statutes of Euroregion Baltic Archived 27 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine , § 7
  26. ↑ Ibid. Archived 27 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine , § 8
  27. ↑ Statutes of Euroregion Baltic Archived 27 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine , § 1
  28. ↑ Euroregion Baltic 2020 Agenda, p. 3
  29. ↑ ERB Action Plan 2010–2011 Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine , pp. 1–2
  30. ↑ "ERB Joint Development Programme" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  31. ↑ ERB Action Plan 2010–2011 Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine , p.2-3
  32. ↑ "Ibid" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 18 November 2010.
  33. ↑ See the recently adopted ERB Joint Position in support of the local border traffic regime with the Kaliningrad Region Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  34. ↑ ERB Action Plan 2010–2011 Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine , p. 3
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.