The 60th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly, 7-8 December 2022
The 60th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly was held in Belgrade, on 7-8 December 2022, upon the invitation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia.
Parliamentary delegations of Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, the Republic of Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Türkiye and Ukraine took part in the works of the General Assembly. Representatives of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS), the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), the Union of Road Transport Associations of the BSEC Member States (BSEC-URTA), the PABSEC Special Representative participated in the Session. Representatives of the Parliamentary Union of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (PUIC), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia (PAUBR), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Cooperation of Turkic States (TURKPA), also took part in the works of the General Assembly, as observers. The National Assembly of Belarus, the Senate of the French Republic, the Marmara Group Strategic and Social Research Foundation took part in the work of the General Assembly, as guests.
The Opening Ceremony was addressed by Mr. Vladimir Orlic, PABSEC President, President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, and Mr. Ivica Dacic, First Vice-Prime Minister in charge of Foreign Policy and Security, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia. The message of Mr. Aleksandar Vucic, President of the Republic of Serbia, to the participants of the 60th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly, was voiced by Mr. Igor Becic, Head of the PABSEC Serbian Delegation, PABSEC Vice-President. The PABSEC Secretary General, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, also addressed the Assembly.
The Assembly approved the Progress Report of the Assembly and the Minutes of the Fifty-Eighth Plenary Session, and ratified the mandates of new members of the Assembly, from Albania, Armenia, Georgia, North Macedonia, Serbia, Türkiye and Ukraine. The Assembly set up a special committee on the mandates of the Russian delegation, consisting of representatives of Bulgaria, Greece, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia and Türkiye.
The Assembly took note of the information on the activities of the BSEC Organization, presented by Ambassador Lazar Comanescu, Secretary General of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS). Representatives of the BSEC Related Bodies, parliamentary assemblies, and international organizations, addressed the Plenary Session.
Within the framework of the Economic, Commercial and Financial Affairs Committee, the Assembly adopted the Report and Recommendation 185/2022 “Challenges and Prospects of Cooperation in the field of Agriculture in the BSEC Member States after the Pandemic”, within the framework of the Legal and Political Affairs Committee - Report and Recommendation 186/2022 “The Role of Parliaments in Stimulating Foreign Investments in the BSEC Member States” and within the framework of the Cultural, Educational and Social Affairs Committee - Report and Recommendation 187/2022 “Social Impact of Refugee Crisis in the BSEC Member States”.
The Assembly approved the Auditing Report for 2021, the Budget for 2023, also confirmed the composition of the Draft Budget and Auditing Commission (Greece, Republic of Moldova, North Macedonia), which will prepare the draft Budget for 2024 and the Report on the execution of the 2022 Budget.
The Assembly approved the decisions “On the Observer Status of the Parliaments of Belarus, Hungary and France with the PABSEC”, also “On the Streamlining the Work of the PABSEC International Secretariat”, and confirmed the decision of the Standing Committee to hold the 61st General Assembly, in Turkey, in May 2023 and discuss the following issues, during the spring meetings of the Committees:
PABSEC Economic, Commercial and Financial Affairs Committee: "The Role of Parliaments in Enhancing Energy Security in the BSEC Member States".
PABSEC Technological and Environmental Affairs Committee: "Space Technologies in the BSEC Member States: National Policies and Developments".
PABSEC Legal and Political Affairs Committee: "The Role of Parliaments in Enhancing Economic Security in the BSEC Member States".
PABSEC Cultural, Educational and Social Affairs Committee: "The Role of Mass Media in Socio-Economic Development of the BSEC Member States".
At the end of the Plenary Session, the PABSEC Presidency was passed to the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye. Mr. Vladimir Orlic, PABSEC President, President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, addressed the Closing Ceremony and handed over the PABSEC Presidency to Mr. Mustafa Sentop, Speaker of the Grand National Assembly of Türkiye.
Mr. Sentop delivered a speech and invited all the participants to the next PABSEC General Assembly, to be held in Turkey, in May 2023. Mr. Sentop handed over to
Mr. Orlic, the PABSEC Medal of Honour, as a recognition of his outstanding contribution to the activity of the PABSEC.