Αποφάσεις - Ανακοινώσεις — ΦΕΚ A' 118/2000

The primary objective of the South-East European Co?operation Process - SEECP-is to strengthen the good?neighborly relations among all states in this region, for transforming this region into an area of peace, security, sta?bility and cooperation. We commit ourselves to firmly act to reach this objective in a spirit of solidarity and cooperation, to the benefit of our coun?tries and peoples, of Europe as a whole. 2093

We recognize the responsibility of our countries to closely work with the international community to develop and imple?ment a shared strategy for stability and growth of our region.

We welcome the adoption of the Stability Pact for South?Eastern Europe and we expect all international organizations and institutions involved to work closely with the countries of the region for the successful and timely implementation of its goals.

We consider that responses to new security challenges and elimination of their root-causes require efforts in a wide range of areas, as well as strengthening international solidar?ity, including our participation in conflict prevention and crisis management activities, peace support operations undertaken by the international community, in particular in the framework of the UN, NATO, the OSCE, WED and other Euro-Atlantic in?stitutions.

We welcome the determination of NATO to actively con?tribute to the building of a more secure and cooperative re?lationship with and among the countries of the region.

The framework of this process comprises political coop?eration which includes questions of security and stability, de?veloping economic and environmental cooperation, pro?motion of humanitarian, social and cultural cooperation, co?operation in the fields of justice, combat against organized crime, elimination of terrorism, illicit drugs, arms and human trafficking.

The cooperation among our countries shall be founded on the UN Charter, on the principle of full observance of the ter?ritorial integrity and sovereignty of all the states in our region, on the principles of the OSCE and the relevant documents of the Council of Europe, in particular the Convention for the Pro?tection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

We reaffirm that our Governments are accountable to their citizens and responsible to one another for the implemen?tation of the commitments undertaken through our countries’ membership in the OSCE and which are matters of direct and legitimate; concern to all the states in this region. We recog?nize that the respect for these commitments constitutes one of the foundations of the international relations to which we in?tend to make a substantial contribution. II. OBJECTIVES AND MECHANISMS OF COOPERATION 11.1 Enhancement of political and security cooperation

We believe that the security of South-Eastern Europe is essential for achieving lasting stability throughout the Euro?Atlantic area and that all the states and the peoples in the South-Eastern Europe should enjoy peace and stability and establish normal relations with one another. Our political and security cooperation serving this purpose shall be focused on: i. Creating peaceful and good-neighborly relations in the re?gion through reconciliation, recognition of the inviolability of the existing international borders and the peaceful resolution of disputes, on the basis of international law; we shall cooper?ate in the framework of UN, NATO, OSCE and other inter?national fora in developing arms control and regional confi?dence building measures and mechanisms for security coop?eration. ii. Preventing and putting an end to tensions and crisis as a prerequisite for lasting stability.

The major forms of cooperation in the political and se?curity field shall be mainly the following: a. Promotion of an intensive political dialogue, through reg?ular meetings of the Heads of State and Government, Minis?ters of Foreign Affairs and Political Directors of the partici?pating countries, as well as sectorial intergovernmental meetings on subjects of common interest, as it may be decid?ed. b. Encouragement of the inter-parliamentary dialogue, of the direct contacts among the representatives of the civil soci?ety, non-governmental organizations and cultural and scien?tific personalities. c. Enhanced regional cooperation in the field of security, in?cluding the South-East European Defense Ministerial framework and the Multinational Peace Force - South-Eastern Europe as instruments for building confidence and security in the region. d. Conclusion between the participating countries of multi?lateral and bilateral cooperation agreements, as well as the promotion of domestic measures to overcome the existing potential for conflict. e. Exchanges of views conducting consultations and, as ap?propriate, taking joint initiatives on matters-relevant to the sta?bility, security and good-neighborly relations in the area, in?cluding the implementation of the 10 principles of the Helsinki Final Act. f. Promotion of confidence building measures in the area and, in particular, the normalization of the relations between all participating countries. g. While preserving and building upon the existing arrange?ments, examination within the SEECP mechanisms or in oth?er relevant fora of proposals and ideas for additional measures in order to respond to specific regional needs for prevention of conflicts and easing of tensions, including observation mis?sions, peace-keeping operations or crisis management activ?ities. h. Active participation to the efforts developed by the inter?national community aiming at consolidating stability and se?curity in the South-Eastern Europe, both in the planning and implementation phases. 11.2. Fostering economic cooperation

We are convinced that fostering bilateral, multilateral and regional economic cooperation and between the region and the rest of Europe constitutes an essential dimension of the good-neighborly relations, security and stability in our area. To this end, our joint action shall be concentrated on: i. Creating viable and vibrant market economy based on sound macro policies, greatly expanded foreign trade and private sector investment, effective and transparent customs and commercial/regulatory regimes, developing strong cap?ital markets and diversified ownership, including privatization, leading to a widening circle of prosperity for all our citizens. ii. Creating the conditions for individual full integration of our countries into Euro-Atlantic political, economic and security structures.

The major instruments, mechanisms and programs for joint cooperation in the economic field are as follows: a. Trade and investment promotion, including removal of existing obstacles, encouraging free flows of goods, capital and commerce, facilitation of business contacts, harmo?nization of the legislation with EU standards, further liberal?ization and harmonization of trade and transport policies, con?clusion of trade liberalization agreements and support for the establishment and efficient functioning of the free trade instru?ments. b. Improved cross-border cooperation in view of promotion of business cooperation, enterprise development, financial 2094 ΕΦΗΜΕΡΙΣ ΤΗΣ ΚΥΒΕΡΝΗΣΕΩΣ (ΤΕΥΧΟΣ ΠΡΩΤΟ) c. Promotion of comprehensive Programs for development of integrated regional transport infrastructure system, includ?ing projects on road, rail, air, maritime, river and lakes, as well as bridges and border-crossing infrastructure construction and development, connecting the transport system of South?Eastern Europe region to Central and Western Europe by the construction of the relevant Pan-European Corridors; rehabil?itation and development of Danube as a waterway of an Euro?pean importance; development of a regional network of oil and gas pipelines, part of the European network; intercon?nection of high voltage electrical transmission lines within the region and with the Western European system; further mod?ernization of the telecommunication system; cooperation in all aspects of the tourism industry; development of new financial instruments, together with the international community in par?ticular with the international financing institutions required to meet such objectives. d. Holding of ministerial or other high-level meetings on the development of the infrastructure of the region and of regular intergovernmental meetings, at least once a year, with the par?ticipation of the representatives of official agencies, experts and business community, to encourage, monitor and imple?ment current activities and to develop new schemes for the economic cooperation. e. Establishing, streamlining and activating various joint re?gional programs, projects, centers and institutions on the ba?sis of costeffectiveness, mutual interest and a fair distribution among the regional countries. f. Encouraging consistently and systematically the official agencies, associations and business community to create and implement cooperative schemes in all areas of common interest. 11.3. Enlargement of cooperation in the fields of human dimension, democracy, justice and combating illegal ac?tivities.

We recognize the utmost importance of intensifying con?tacts and cooperation in human dimensions, social and cultur?al fields, developing democratic institutions and civil society, facilitating free circulation of information and ideas, as well as of citizens. We underline that our countries are attaching the highest priority to the protection of human rights and funda?mental freedoms as an essential basis for good governance, friendship and mutual understanding. In this direction, our common endeavor shall be oriented to: i. Bringing about mature democratic political processes, based on pluralism, free and fair elections, grounded in the rule of law and full respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the rights of persons belonging to nation?al minorities, with legislative branches accountable to their constituents, independent judiciaries and deepening and strengthening of civil society. ii. Promoting social harmony within our countries and in the region and recognizing the important role which respective national minorities may play as social and cultural bridges be?tween our peoples.

The mechanisms and the programs of joint action in these ample areas shall cover: a. Further development of cooperation in such fields as hu?man dimensions, democratization, justice and rule of law, in?ter-ethnic tolerance, free circulation of ideas and individuals, youth education, programs to eliminate misperceptions and prejudices, all of them playing a significant role in strengthen?ing stability and security in our region. b. Support for enhanced cooperation in the fields of ed?ucation, science and technology, cultural and art, increased exchanges and contacts between journalists and between youth, organized independently or through national associ?ations and educational institutions, sports competitions, fes?tivals and other events in order to bring our nations closer. c. Respect for cultural heritage and for regional cultures, protection and restoration of monuments, if necessary through mutual assistance, constitutes another dimension in our region, where different cultures have coexisted and flour?ished. Besides the cooperation in relevant institutions such as UNESCO, Council of Europe and bilaterally, participating countries will seek a more advanced cooperation in these fields through their competent authorities and by encouraging non-governmental organizations in this direction. d. Well aware of the threats which terrorism, organized crime, illicit drug and arms trafficking constitute for our peo?ples, as well as for our societies at large, we express our de?termination to strengthen the cooperation among the partici?pating countries in these fields, by new and effective measures and joint actions and by working together with existing re?gional and international bodies competent in this direction. e. Strengthening border controls to combat the activities described above, as well as illegal migration, directing nation?al authorities to a more developed cooperation, as well as co?ordination and timely information exchange in these fields, as necessary, by conclusion of agreements and other instru?ments for cooperation; actions in these fields should respect international standards for the protection of individual rights and the freedom of circulation of the citizens, without harass?ment and discrimination. f. Cooperation and joint actions for environmental protec?tion, in particular through systematic exchange of information, bilateral and multilateral agreements and concrete common projects mainly in the border areas. III. FINAL PROVISIONS

The South-East European Cooperation Process is a comprehensive framework for regional cooperation. We reaf?firm our willingness to closely participate in, and cooperate with all other international organizations and regional ini?tiatives aiming at promoting security, stability, economic and social prosperity in our area, in particular with UN, NATO, EU, OSCE, the Council of Europe, BSEC, CEI, SECI, the Royau?mont Process, and to coordinate our actions in order to avoid unnecessary duplications.

Taking into account the specificity of the areas of inter?est of other regional initiatives and considering that not all par?ticipating states of the SEECP may be taking part in such ini?tiatives, we stress the importance of making flexible arrange?ments for opening relevant schemes and projects to the participation or to the benefit of all regional countries, without prejudice to the charters and regulations of the respective ini?tiatives.

The South-East European Cooperation Process is open, by agreement among the participating countries, to the par?ticipation in appropriate forms to States which geographically belong to this area and declare their full adhesion to the pre?sent Charter.

The cooperative arrangements among a limited number of regional partners conforming to the objectives of this Char?ter, as well as interaction with other regional initiatives consid?ered as complementary efforts to the jointly conducted coop?ΕΦΗΜΕΡΙΣ ΤΗΣ ΚΥΒΕΡΝΗΣΕΩΣ (ΤΕΥΧΟΣ ΠΡΩΤΟ) 2095 the agreement of all the other participating countries.