Asaf Hajiyev

News

Participation of Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, in the Inter-Parliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), Sofia, 15-17 February 2018

During 15-17 February 2018, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, participated in the Inter-Parliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP), held in Sofia.

Mrs. Tsveta Karayancheva, Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, Mrs. Dzhema Grozdanova, Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria and Mr. David McAllister, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the European Parliament, addressed the gathering, on 16 February, at the Opening Ceremony.

During the first day of the Conference, Mrs. Federica Mogherini, High Representative of the Union, for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, presented to the parliamentarians the current priorities and objectives of the Union, in the field of Common Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Common Security and Defense Policy and answered the numerous questions.

The European perspective for the Western Balkan countries and the acceleration of the reforms in the region, were in the focus of the discussions on the second day of the Conference, when Mrs. Ekaterina Zaharieva, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria, addressed the gathering. The agenda of the Conference also included the implementation of the Global Strategy on CSDP and the situation in the Black Sea Region. A special attention was given to the working groups on Strategic Energy and Transport Connectivity of the Western Balkans, the Danube strategy and the EU-China relations.

Addressing as a key-note speaker in the “State of Play of the Black Sea Region” panel, Mr. Hajiyev informed the participants about the ongoing and forthcoming PABSEC activities, the current situation in the BSEC Region, in the fieds of energy, transportation, migrant crisis, security and stability, taking into account all the Reports and Recommendations that had been prepared and discussed on these subjects, at the PABSEC Committee meetings. He answered the questions at the end of the panel.

The participants noted that the changing security environment in the Black Sea Region is a serious challenge for the EU, and it continues to have a major impact on the security and stability throughout the Euro-Atlantic zone. They expressed the belief that the EU must remain a driving force in the neighboring countries, for the continuation of the reforms, towards democratization, inclusiveness and growth, on the basis of the Euro-Atlantic values. The parliamentarians supported the EU-NATO cooperation in the management of the migratory flows in the Black Sea Region, Aegean Sea and the Central Mediterranean, as a measure for strengthening the international law and the protection of forced migrants. It was underlined that the European institutions need to increase the visibility of the Black Sea Region, including the development of the connectivity with the Danube region and the valorization of the potential of other EU macro-regional strategies.