Increase of political-military cooperation in South-Eastern Europe

Romania hosted on March 27 and 28, in Iaºi, the working meetings of the Coordination Committee of the South-East European Defence Ministers (SEDM-CC) and of the Political-Military Steering Committee of the Multinational Peace Force South-Eastern Europe (PMSC).

In the opening of the working sessions, State Secretary for Defense Policy, Planning and International Relations, Simona Cojocaru, as acting chairman of the two committees, emphasized the relevance of these working formats in the current security context. At the same time, she highlighted the importance of regional cooperation within the SEDM initiative in order to increase the relevance of the South-Eastern Europe Brigade (SEEBRIG) and to strengthen resilience at the level of the SEDM member states.

During the working sessions of the Political-Military Steering Committee of the Multinational Peace Force South-Eastern Europe, the officials approached aspects regarding the current status of the activities carried out by SEEBRIG, in the context of marking 25 years since the establishment of this military structure, as well as the projects meant to increase the visibility and relevance of SEEBRIG, in the current regional security context.

During the working meeting of the Coordination Committee of the South-East European Defence Ministers, the officials reviewed the initiative's ongoing and future projects, with focus on the initiation and development in the field of resilience. In the same format, the recent accession of the Republic of Moldova to the SEDM initiative, as a full member, was an important point on the discussion agenda.

The event, which was attended by representatives of the 16 member states and three regional international organizations, benefitted from the support of the 15th "Podu Înalt" Mechanized Brigade support. It was organized by Romania, in the context of exercising the chairmanship of the regional cooperation initiative of the South-Eastern Europe Defence Ministerial Process throughout 2023 – 2025, according to the rotational schedule agreed by the member states.

The Press Office