In Bucharest, the third summit meeting of the so-called Three-oceans-Initiative. This Forum brings together twelve Central and Eastern European EU countries from the Baltic sea across the Adriatic sea to the Black sea.
Construction of the LNG terminal in świnoujście on the Baltic sea
The Three-oceans-Initiative was launched two years ago, on the initiative of Croatia and Poland. Already in the period between the two world wars, Poland had tried a similar project (Intermarium), to make its influence in the Region.
Participants in the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania), the countries of the Visegrad group (Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary) and Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania. With the exception of Austria, all the other participants are joined only to the EU in 2004. At the first summit in 2016 will meet in the Croatian Dubrovnik, the participating States agreed on close cooperation in the fields of energy economy and infrastructure. So again, the long-planned Expressway “Via Carpatia is to be made” from the Baltic to Thessaloniki on the Aegean sea, finally ready.
Another key project: the establishment of two LNG Terminals in Poland’s Świnoujście and on the island of Krk in Croatia for the Import of American liquefied natural gas by sea. Not only the East-Central European States are afraid by the construction of the NordStream2 Pipeline from Russia to Germany through the Baltic sea, bypassing Ukraine and Poland, a growing dependence of European energy supplies from Russia.
The construction of the NorStream2 Pipeline is seen by the Three seas Initiative as an economic and political threat.
A political impetus to the Initiative of 2017, was the participation of the US President Donald Trump at the Warsaw summit. Now want to the top of the high representative of the twelve member States, meeting in Bucharest with the European Union, and in particular with Germany on cooperation for advice. As extraordinary guest of the EU-Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and the German foreign Minister Heiko Maas. Especially in the Western part of the EU, the new North-South axis in the East, the Union was often criticized as a counter-weight to the old “core Europe”. About a German participation in the Initiative – as a Partner or full member will be discussed to some extent.
The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis declared in the run-up to the summit, the Three-oceans-Initiative must now prove that they reduce the economic gap to Western Europe, noticeably, and as an active Instrument for the consolidation of the transatlantic relations could contribute.
The member States have repeatedly stressed that their Initiative would not the establishment of a safety corridor to Russia. Therefore, they wanted to inform Moscow about the planned projects on a regular basis.
What the States hope for but, is in addition to the recognition of their efforts in Brussels, the continuing support of the United States. At the Bucharest summit, the American Secretary of energy, Rick Perry takes part. President Donald Trump has highlighted in a Letter to his Romanian counterpart Klaus Iohannis, the United States wanted to remain a strong ally and Partner of the project.
New at the summit, that an international economic forum held on the sidelines of the representatives from the countries of the Western Balkans and the EU-Eastern partnership (Moldova, Georgia, Ukraine). Also top representatives of some financial institutions such as the EBRD, the world Bank and the European investment Bank.