The 11th Conference on the Regional and Local Authorities for the Eastern Partnership (CORLEAP) annual meeting which took place in Liberec, Czech Republic was chaired by Aleksandra Dulkiewicz, Mayor of Gdańsk. Referring to the recent developments whereby Ukraine and Republic of Moldova were granted EU candidate country status, and Georgia given the European perspective Dulkiewicz said "These changed circumstances made some people to start questioning the purpose of continued existence and functioning of the EaP and CORLEAP.
However, Eastern Partnership (EaP) and CORLEAP are here to stay – cooperation between the local and regional authorities from EaP countries among themselves and with their EU counterparts may even become more important in the new context. Nevertheless, new challenges require new responses. It is important to keep our focus on decentralisation and reforms in EaP countries, despite the need to tackle many other ongoing challenges.
"We have to adapt our work to the current global context, where large part of our planet is exposed to the devastating effects of the Russian aggression in Ukraine – energy and food prices, rising inflation, economic downturn, hunger. Now we will need to strengthen our Eastern Partnership (EaP) more than ever." said Olgierd Geblewicz, President of the EPP-CoR Group and West Pomerania Region during the meeting
Geblewicz added that the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) should start playing a coordinating role to represent the positions of regional and local authorities during COP meetings and especially in the EU delegation. He emphasised that these positions should be formulated in consultation with regional and local counterparts form the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood and the Western Balkans. "Climate diplomacy should no longer be a state-to-state affair and that subnational governments have excellent practices on adaptation."
Discussing the voice of cities and regions on the future of the EaP, Alin-Adrian Nica, President of Timiş County Council said that the ongoing crisis brings with it an opportunity: to adapt the EaP to new terms, realities and changing conditions for support. In this regard, he suggested that the regional platform can go beyond the existing geographical format and, with its scope reconsidered, encompass the Western Balkans.
Nica who is the CoR rapporteur on the Future of the EaP added that partnership countries should be given flexibility in choosing programmes that are the most relevant for them, and, at the same time, programmes directed towards the local and regional bodies, be prioritized. This will, consequently, give the CoR and CORLEAP a special role and responsibility, not only in the process of restructuring the EAP, but much further along.