Black Sea group calls for unity for regional peace

By Nilay Kar Onum

ISTANBUL

The 25th anniversary of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (PABSEC): Summit of the Speakers kicked off in Istanbul with calls from member countries for regional peace.

“We have to be together to bring peace and reconciliation to the region,” PABSEC Secretary General Asaf Hajiyev said during the opening of the summit, where Anadolu Agency is serving as the official photo provider.

The summit started with a session on “the Role of the Parliaments in Shaping the Future of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation".

“Black Sea region has always played an important role in world politics because it is considered as a bridge between Asia and Europe. It is a crossroad of the main transportation routes like Silk Way from East to West," Hajiyev said.

“Black Sea should not divide us. Black Sea should unite us,” he added.

“We hope the cooperation among member countries will further strengthen. We need to encourage dialogue,” Gramoz Ruci, PABSEC president and speaker of the parliament of the Republic of Albania, said.

“We are a regional organization but we have global responsibilities,” Ruci added.

On the occasion, Turkish Parliament Speaker Ismail Kahraman underlined the importance of cooperation among the member countries.

“We support every kind of initiative to improve the regional connection in the fields of energy and transportation,” Kahraman said.

“In this regard, we believe there is an important potential of cooperation in the Black Sea Region, which is in the intersection position of the world’s most important energy and transportation roads.”

“To contribute to regional and international peace […] are also among our duties,” the Turkish parliament speaker noted, referring to the recent developments in the Gaza Strip.

Kahraman also proposed the member countries to add an article condemning the recent Israeli massacre in the Gaza Strip to the joint declaration agreed on May 11.

Several countries including Romania, Serbia, and Bulgaria have not accepted the proposal yet as they wanted to consult it with their respective parliaments.

The summit was attended by the speakers of Albania, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Serbia and Turkey, Deputy Speaker of the State Duma of the Russia Federation and Heads of the PABSEC National Delegations of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine.