2008-04-21 Further Developments within Baltic Sea Strategy

EU Commissioner Ms Danuta Hubner and Regional Policy General Directorate have been made responsible by the Eurorean Commission for the development of the EU Baltic Sea Strategy, and specifically, the European Territorial Cooperation Unit. The European Commission has taken up work on a stocktaking report with a view to drafting the Strategy. The Strategy will be developed within a crosssetoral group of 17 representatives of EC General Directorates, including DG Relex, DG Evironment and DG Mare. The Strategy is expected to be a communique with the first draft presented in June 2008. A number of stakeholder conferences are planned afterwards, inluding one in Stockholm in September 2008 and one in Germany in January 2009. In June 2009 the European Commission plans to submit the document for adoption by the Council of European Union.