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MP Biro Rozalia of the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR) said on Thursday that it is logical and normal for European funds to be allocated for mountain co-operation among the countries sharing the Carpathian Mountains.
This idea was advocated by Biro as a representative of the Romanian Parliament at the 32nd edition of the "Carpathian Europe" conference, organised by Poland at Krasiczyn, February 5-6.
According to the MP, the conference, attended by officials from Central and Eastern Europe, included, on the one hand, a dialogue among the representatives of the national parliaments, and, on the other hand, dialogues among the government officials of the participating countries.
The forum, held in a hybrid in-person and virtual format, discussed the importance of developing a common strategy for countries that call the Carpathian Mountains their natural wealth, Agerpres.ro informs.
Biro said the initiative had been supported from the very outset by four countries: Poland, Slovakia, Ukraine and Hungary, but it is viewed with some reservations by other guest countries such as Serbia, the Czech Republic, Romania, Moldova and Austria, all countries that cover a sizeable part of the Carpathian Mountains.
"Romania's position is open, but still with reservations. Open because any dialogue is welcome, as well as any format of regional co-operation, but with reservations because there are other regional collaboration formats and that would mean an overlap: there is the European Union Strategy for the Danube Region (which also has a dimension of mountain co-operation, with the exception of Poland), regional co-operation under the Carpathian Convention and the Three Seas Initiative," Biro told journalists.
At the conference, Biro underscored the need for Central and Eastern European countries to have a stronger presence in the European Union area, saying that any regional or micro-regional co-operation is welcome.
"We consider the Carpathian Mountains to be an invaluable asset to the European Union and to Europe, so it is logical and normal to allocate funds for this mountain co-operation as well," said Biro.
She mentioned the need for dialogue to continue in various possible areas of collaboration, first of all tourism, followed by assessments, capitalisation, presentation and marketing of the national heritage of the countries in this format of co-operation.
Biro also recommended that the entire regional collaboration be based on mutual respect, on strengthening common points of interest and on a joint representation of this region at the level of the decision-making bodies in the European Union.
