Juncker: EU supports all projects discussed at Three Seas Initiative

„Europe needs to breathe with two lungs, one in the East and the other in the West, and emphasis must be put on cooperation and a common language”, President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, said on Tuesday during the "Three Seas Initiative" summit in Bucharest (17-18 September).

President Juncker has addressed the Tuesday plenary session titled 'An Initiative which delivers - key projects in energy, transport, digital interconnections. The Three Seas Initiative as catalyst for the cohesion and convergence of the EU and for the strengthening of the transatlantic link'.

"We support the 'Three Seas Initiative' and encourage you to open new ways of communication between the two lungs of the continent, but also between the North and South," EC President said. "It is only in this way that will we be able to implement a dear project for all Europeans, no matter where they live, East, West, North or South. European connectivity is of paramount importance. We support all things, all the initiatives adopted here and all the ideas", Jean-Claude Juncker added.

European Union allocates money on infrastructure development for "quicker and easier" travel, spends money for energy and natural gas, but also for other investment projects, EC President mentioned. "We would like to make available all the financial means you need, all the financial possibilities the EU will have will be made available", Junker stated.

"Three Seas Initiative" is a flexible and informal platform launched in 2015, which includes the 12 EU Member States located between the Adriatic, the Baltic and the Black Seas: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

Summit achieved concrete progress in multiplying transport, energy and digital interconnections in the region. To that effect, representatives of the participating EU Member States, as well as their guests, discussed concrete contributions in order to boost connectivity in the region, increase convergence, cohesion and EU unity, as well as strengthen transatlantic ties.

European Commission recognises the contribution of the Three Seas Initiative to regional development, which leads to greater cohesion of the Union as a whole. In concrete terms, the European Commission is a major contributor to investments in connectivity and infrastructure development in the Three Seas region. Investment Plan for Europe - ‘Juncker Plan’ - finances connectivity projects in the region through its flagship initiative, European Fund for Strategic Investments.

Goals of the Three Seas Initiative:

• To boost connectivity within the region, in particular on energy, transport infrastructure, and digital communication.

• To stimulate economic development, contributing to east–west and north–south cohesion within the European Union.

• To facilitate achieving real convergence among EU Member States and strengthen the European Union as a whole.

This is the third summit of the Three Seas Initiative. First two summits took place in Dubrovnik, Croatia (2016) and Warsaw, Poland (2017).

Source:RRA.European Commission