PABSEC 54th General Assembly, Sofia, 19-21 November 2019 - second day, 20 November 2019 - Plenary Session
The 54th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly began its work on 20 November 2019. Parliamentary delegations of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine take part in it. Also the representative of the Hellenic BSEC Chairmanship-in-Office, the Secretary General of the BSEC Permanent International Secretariat, the Secretary General of the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), the Director General of the International Center for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS) and the Secretary General of the Union of Road Transport Associations of the BSEC Member States (BSEC- URTA), PABSEC Special Representatives participate in the Session.
Representatives of the Parliament of the French Republic, the National Council of the Slovak Republic, the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy (IAO), the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Cooperation Process in South-East Europe (SEECP PA), the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (PUIC), The Parliamentary Assembly of the Turkic-speaking Countries (TURKPA) participate in the Plenary Session as observers. Representatives of the Baltic Assembly, the Turkic Council and the Marmara Group Foundation take part as guests.
The Plenary Session was opened with the official ceremony during which Ms. Tsveta Karayancheva, PABSEC President, President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, Mr. Petar Kanev, head of the PABSEC Bulgarian delegation, Ms. Dzhema Grozdanova, Chairperson of the Foreign Policy Committee of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria, addressed the participants. The messages of the Mr. Boyko Borisov, Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria, Mr. Rumen Radev, President of the Republic of Bulgaria, and the Hellenic BSEC Chairmanship-in-Office were presented. Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General also addressed the participants.
After the Opening Ceremony, former and current members of the Assembly were awarded for their contribution to the development of parliamentarism in the BSEC region and their continued support for the Assembly.
On the first day of the Plenary session, speeches were made by the Secretary General of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS), the Secretary General of the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), the Director General of the International Center for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS) and the Secretary General of the Union of Road Transport Associations of the BSEC Member States (BSEC-URTA). Observers and guests of the Assembly also addressed the participants.
The members of the Assembly elected the PABSEC Vice Presidents - Ms. Anush Begloian (Armenia) and Mr. Simeon Kedikoglou (Greece).
The Assembly approved the Progress Report of the Assembly and the Protocol of the Fifty-third Plenary Session, ratified the credentials for the new members of the Assembly.
The Assembly held a General Debate on “European Dimensions of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation – Current State and Prospects for EU – BSEC Cooperation” with the participation of the heads of national delegations.
In the framework of the Economic, Commercial, Technological and Environmental Affairs Committee, the Assembly adopted the Report and Recommendation 170/2019 “Conclusion of Preferential Trade Agreements with a view to Eliminate Double Taxation between the BSEC Member States” and, in the framework of the Legal and Political Affairs Committee, adopted the Report and Recommendation 171/2019 “Legal and Political Aspects of the Development of Transport Routes in the BSEC Region”.
On Thursday, 21 November 2019, the Plenary Session will continue its work.