Regional leaders commit in Cardiff to more and better co-operation between EU and non-EU Atlantic regions

Many challenges are facing the Atlantic Area – including Brexit, COVID and war in Ukraine, but also long-standing ones such as the climate emergency and the green and digital transitions. Reunited in Cardiff (Wales) for the 2023 General Assembly of the CPMR Atlantic Arc Commission, Regional leaders from across the Atlantic reaffirm the need for further cooperation frameworks, including with Atlantic non-EU regions, and call for the swift adoption of an Atlantic Macro-Regional strategy.

First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford welcomed delegates to Cardiff: “Wales is an outward-looking, globally-responsible nation. Wales is a nation that stands for solidarity and cooperation, working together with our European and non-European partners to address immediate and serious challenges to climate, nature and democracy – both here and around the world. Your presence here today reinforces that”.

CPMR President and Regional Minister of Noord-Holland Cees Loggen addressed the members of the Atlantic Arc Commission “This General Assembly is hugely symbolic as it is the first time it is held in the UK after Brexit. This is the proof that regions, no matter geopolitical changes, can remain a solid level of cooperation, acting pragmatically on shared interests!” he said.

“Cooperation via communities and networks like CPMR is the only way to address the global challenges we all face. We want to continue this constructive cooperation and hopefully engage more fully with transatlantic regions in the future”, said Vaughan Getting, Minister for the Economy of the Welsh Government.

María Ángeles Elorza Zubiria, Secretary General for the EU and External Action of the Basque Government, on behalf of the Presidency of the Atlantic Arc Commission reminded the importance of reinforcing the weight of the Atlantic in the European Union: “In the current context of marginalisation of the Atlantic with the shift of focus towards the East it is important for us to influence the EU Agenda and improve our collaboration through a more strategic approach, and enhance our role as gateway to Europe. The Atlantic Macro-Region we defend is a key instrument in this respect and will provide us with the opportunity to step up” she said.

The Government of Québec was officially welcomed to be an associate member of the Atlantic Arc Commission. “We profoundly believe in the value of exchanges of experiences and good practices among our territories. I aam certain that the cooperation with the CPMR and the Atlantic Arc Commission will favor valuable regional partnerships in priority sectors for transatlantic cooperation for Québec such as inter port cooperation, ecological transition in the maritime sectors and coastal tourism” said Geneviève Brisson, Delegate General of the Québec Government Office in Brussels.

Regional leaders sent a strong call on the Spanish Presidency of the Council to make the Atlantic Macro-Regional Strategy a political priority in view of giving a mandate to the European Commission for its swift development. In their just adopted Final Declaration, members of the CPMR Atlantic Arc Commission detail the scope and priorities that would allow to deliver an innovative and sustainable Atlantic economy, an interconnected, climate-resilient, and socially cohesive Atlantic area with improved governance and co-operation mechanisms.

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On the occasion of the AAC General Assembly, Member regions voted a new Political Declaration restating their vision on the future of the Atlantic area. Read the Atlantic Arc Commission Political Declaration 2023.

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