The Three Seas Initiative is fully in keeping with Hungary’s regional policy as it aims to boost economic prosperity, which is needed for the long-term stability of central Europe, the head of parliament’s foreign affairs committee said on Wednesday.
Zsolt Németh, of ruling Fidesz, said after a meeting of the committee that the Three Seas cooperation had been established on Poland’s initiative, with Hungary’s support. The cooperation is not in contrast with the Visegrad Group but supplements it, he added.
The initiative aims to boost economic prosperity in central and eastern Europe by developing economic, transport and digital infrastructure, he said. An investment fund has been set up in the framework of the initiative and Hungary is a participant. The previous US administration made a 300 million dollar offer to the fund and it is important that the current administration should maintain that offer, he added.
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Under the Trump Administration, U.S. policy in the Balkans had some important successes, notably, the accessions of Montenegro (2017) and North Macedonia (2020) to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as well as the 2020 signing of economic normalization agreements between Kosovo and Serbia.
Progress should not give way to complacency, however. The Western Balkans remain home to unfinished business. The region warrants continued focused attention, particularly considering Chinese and Russian efforts to capitalize on the ongoing coronavirus pandemic to burnish their influence in the Western Balkans.
Constructive engagement from the Biden Administration in the Balkans, for instance, by expanding the Three Seas Initiative (3SI), continuing support for Kosovo’s recognition as an independent country, and aiding reforms that will unleash prosperity would build on recent momentum and best minimize the risk that any nefarious outside influences can derail the
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Launched in 2016, the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is a valuable project for strengthening trade, infrastructure, energy, and political cooperation among countries bordering the Adriatic Sea, the Baltic Sea, and the Black Sea. A strong, prosperous, and secure Eastern Europe is in America’s interest, and the 3SI plays an important role in making this happen.
The 3SI has received strong bipartisan support in the U.S. since its inception, and despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the initiative has continued to gain momentum over the past year. In 2021, the Biden Administration and Congress should continue to feature the 3SI as a central component of U.S. policy in Europe. The initiative is a force multiplier that bolsters security in Europe and strengthens transatlantic trade ties by marrying private capital with some of the most dynamic and growing economies in Europe, while also helping to stymie Chinese and Russian efforts to make inroads in the region.
The Intermarium, lands between the Baltic, Black and Adriatic Seas, have received a generous farewell present from President Donald Trump: a whopping $300 million for energy projects in the region.