Working visit of Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, to Athens, 13 October 2021

On 13 October 2021, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, paid a working visit to Athens and took part in a series of activities. He was accompanied by Mr. Miltiadis Makrygiannis, PABSEC Deputy Secretary General.

At the meeting with Mr. Konstantine Tassoulas, President of the Hellenic Parliament, the importance of cooperation between the BSEC and the PABSEC was emphasized, underlining the significance of strengthening the relations among the member states in bilateral and multilateral formats. The President of the Hellenic Parliament noted the significance of the cooperation in the field of environmental protection and proposed to hold joint activities in this area. He also informed the PABSEC Secretary General about the exhibition held in the Hellenic Parliament entitled “Facing Freedom – in the Hellenic Parliament two centuries later”.

The PABSEC Secretary General thanked the President of the Hellenic Parliament for his personal contribution to the successful cooperation among the parliaments of the BSEC Member States and stressed the active role of the PABSEC Hellenic Delegation to the work of the Assembly. As an expression of gratitude for the important contribution of the Hellenic Parliament during the PABSEC Presidency in the second half of 2020, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev handed over to Mr. Konstantine Tassoulas with the PABSEC Medal of Honour.

Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, met Mr. Simeon Kedikoglu, Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Agriculture of the Hellenic Republic, the former Head of the PABSEC Hellenic Delegation. The issues regarding the PABSEC activities and preparatory work for the upcoming PABSEC General Assembly in Romania in November 2021 were discussed. The Secretary General informed the Deputy Minister that the topic of the next meeting of the PABSEC Economic Committee will be perspectives for cooperation in the field of agriculture in the BSEC states after the pandemic. It was expressed the hope for developing the cooperation within the framework of the PABSEC.

Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General, and Mr. Miltiadis Makrygiannis, Deputy Secretary General, took part in the 8th Green Energy Investment Forum, organized by the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (BSEC) and the BSEC Green Energy Network. This forum was attended by the representatives of the governments and academic circles of the BSEC Member States, as well as the BSEC-related bodies.

In his speech, Mr. Asaf Hajiyev stressed that the issue of green energy is extremely important both for the BSEC countries of the world. He noted that green energy issues require a collective discussion and increasing investment in this field implies the development of the appropriate legislation in the BSEC countries representing a contribution to future generations. The PABSEC Secretary General also emphasized the role of national parliaments in the process of adopting the necessary legislation for the implementation of projects in the field of green energy.