Secretary General Biscevic has provided you with an update on the progress in setting-up the overall RCC framework and I think we are well on track in this respect.

Allow me to come back to some of the issues in this context at the end.

These discussions should not divert attention from the substantial work which is continuing at the same time. The RCC will inherit from the Stability Pact a consistent and streamlined set of initiatives, largely owned by and based in SEE, that cover most of the priorities identified by the region itself as the main challenges for future regional co-operation.

This regional agenda is strong and gathering pace.  We have a very active autumn ahead of us and you have complemented this very well in the coming months.  This is particularly so in the crucial spring months next year when the Secretary General Biscevic and the RCC secretariat step fully into their leadership and support roles:

1. The signing of the MoU on the Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Initiative DPPI this month in Zagreb;
2. The first Ministerial meeting of the new CEFTA 2006 later this month in Ohrid;
3. The consecutive JHA Ministerials in the context of the Brdo Process and the EU-Western Balkans context in early October;
4. In early October a key meeting of RACVIAC, which will decide on the expansion of the scope of activities to activities beyond the purely military issues.
5. The Employment Ministerial in Montenegro in late October;
6. A Ministerial on Higher Education in Dubrovnik in late October;
7. A Ministerial on electronic SEE in Sarajevo in late October;
8. And finally the meetings of the Stability Pact Working Tables in early December in Tirana.

And this is only a selection of the higher level meetings.

This is proof of a very strong regional agenda which is on track and will continue in the future, even though the umbrella over it will change from the Stability Pact to the Regional Co-operation Council and the South East European Co-operation Process.  It is important to recognize – and to stress -- that literally hundreds of people are working hard today to advance regional cooperation and this commitment and energy will remain a key feature of the RCC era in the future.

Allow me to address a few of these regional initiatives specifically:

The devastating forest fires in South Eastern Europe this summer as well as the extensive floods along the Danube and tributary rivers in recent years – not to mention the seismic vulnerability of the region -- have again highlighted the need for a co-ordinated regional approach in the face of natural disasters. A concerted move towards making a joint effort and taking concrete action is essential, considering the fact that the fires this year have claimed several lives and had a significant negative impact on the economies of the region.

DPPI provides a platform for such co-operation and the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on DPPI later this month will provide a basis to further develop its activities into a more operational direction. More is needed, which is why I have written to your Prime Ministers suggesting a high level meeting on this topic in spring 2008, possibly already under the auspices of the RCC.

Our regional co-operation agenda has an important and modern economic dimension, which is taking shape also with the recent entry into force of CEFTA, this summer, after the first five countries have ratified it. We hope that also Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia will be able to ratify the agreement in time to fully participate in the upcoming CEFTA Ministerial, where key decisions on the implementation on the Agreement will be taken.

Liberalisation of trade and investment is a cornerstone of economic prosperity in SEE, and is closely related to attracting badly needed foreign direct investment to the region as well as promoting domestic investment and regional investment flows. Co-ordination, peer-review mechanisms and exchange of best practices between the countries of the region have a major role in improving the investment climate in each of them, and identifying and implementing key reforms. This is the aim of the recently launched SEE Investment Committee, a modern tool assisting SEE countries in developing policy guidelines and implementing reforms in the field of investments, mirroring in SEE mechanisms adopted by the most advanced economies of the world. Complementing these efforts is the encouraging work ongoing in the information and technology area, which is so important to the development of the knowledge economy of the future, a point underscored in the Prime Ministers’ Declaration in Zagreb.

Moving to Sofia: the Focal Point on Parliamentary co-operation is being established and becoming fully operational, hosted by the National Assembly. This is one more achievement in terms of regional ownership, as the Focal point will take over responsibility on activities previously managed by the SP Parliamentary Co-operation Task Force. The Focal Point will facilitate networking and information exchange between parliaments of the region, enhancing their co-operation at different levels, and helping to improve the lawmaking process throughout the region and the ability of parliaments to oversee governments’ activities - a pillar of modern democracy and a pre-condition of getting closer to the EU.

These are just a few examples showing that eight years since the launch of the Stability Pact, the agenda of regional co-operation is now well advanced and finds new energy in the transition from the Stability Pact to the Regional Co-operation Council.

Regional co-operation, as we all have learned during these last years, is necessary if South East Europe is to take one the many common challenges successfully.  Most important, it is a necessary step on the way to the European and Euro-Atlantic integration. And both, the co-operation with the EU and NATO are of importance for the success of the future regional framework. With the NATO Summit taking place here in the region – in Bucharest – next year, there is an opportunity to further underline this with a reference to the RCC in the Summit Declaration.

I would like to thank the Bulgarian SEECP Chairmanship for the strong commitment and substantial work in implementing the decisions we took together in Zagreb last May, in particular regarding the Host Country Agreement for the RCC Secretariat.

The signature of this agreement today will ensure a sound legal basis for the RCC Secretariat, while the proposed structure and budget that were presented to you by the Secretary General shall lay the foundations of a dynamic and operative set-up, working for the benefit of an enhanced regional co-operation agenda.

We now need to ensure a speedy ratification of the Agreement in order for it to come into force by the end of this year.

I would also like to remind everyone around the table here today to take the necessary budgetary steps to allow for their respective contributions to the RCC Budget to be made in early 2008.

We have a busy autumn ahead of us, not to mention the coming spring, but I would say that we are well on track in meeting our goal of February 2008 for handing over the baton from the Stability Pact to the Regional Co-operation Council.