05.03.2008 - Artículo
Regional Cooperation Council: Assuming more Autonomy in South-Eastern Europe

On 27 February 2008, the Regional Cooperation Council launched its operations as successor organization to the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe in an effort to enable the Balkan States to assume increased responsibility for their own political development. The SDC is providing both financial and ideological support to the Cooperation Council.

The goal of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) is to enhance regional cooperation and both European and Euro-Atlantic integration. The Council has taken over the work of the former Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe. Switzerland was among the countries agreeing to the 10 May 2007 decision to transform the Stability Pact into the Regional Cooperation Council and to transfer the Headquarters from Brussels to Sarajevo. The objective of this transformation is to foster self-reliance and to strengthen regional autonomy.

Switzerland has earmarked CHF 600,000 to support the Regional Cooperation Council over the next three years as a sign of its continuing commitment in favor of the regional integration and political stabilization of South-Eastern Europe. In fact, Switzerland was one of the states supporting the Stability Pact for South-Eastern Europe back at the time of its foundation in 1999.

The work of the Cooperation Council will focus on economic and social development, infrastructure and the environment, security cooperation, justice and domestic affairs, education and research, and parliamentary cooperation. The member countries are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, (FYRO) Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, and Kosovo. The Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council will be the Croatian Hidajet Biščević, currently State Secretary at the Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.