SEDM Political-Military Steering Committee and Coordination Committee Meetings

State Secretary for Defence Policy, Planning and International Relations, Simona Cojocaru, chaired, on March 25-26, 2025, the 53rd meeting of the Political-Military Steering Committee (PMSC) and the 52nd meeting of the Coordination Committee within the "South-Eastern Europe Defence Ministerial Process" (SEDM).

 

The activities conducted in the context of Romania's exertion of the rotational chairmanship of the SEDM regional initiative were attended by representatives of the 16 SEDM member states, the Commander of the South-Eastern Europe Brigade (SEEBRIG), as well as delegates of regional and international partner organizations - SEEBRIG, SEESAC, RACVIAC, RCC - alongside representatives of the Euro-Atlantic Resilience Center (E-ARC).

 

The talks agenda included current topics such as the evolution of SEEBRIG activities since the last SEDM Defense Ministers' Meeting in November 2024, the implementation stage of the lines of action associated to the new concept of increasing SEEBRIG's relevance, as well as of the projects developed under the aegis of SEDM.

 

 In this context, the officials emphasized importance of organizing the first Expert Working Group on SEEBRIG’s Strengthening, held at the SEEBRIG Headquarters in Kumanovo, Republic of North Macedonia, on February 25 and 26, 2025. The need to continue these efforts was also highlighted, with a second Working Group planned for July 2025.

The first roundtable dedicated to the resilience project took place as part of the ministerial, an initiative proposed by Romania and approved by the SEDM Defense Ministers at the 2024 Ministerial.

As these were the last meetings hosted under the Romanian Chairmanship, the main achievements of the mandate were reviewed, including the approval of the Concept on Strengthening the SEEBRIG Relevance, the launch of a new project on Resilience within the SEDM, and the accession of the Republic of Moldova as a full member of the initiative.

 

In conclusion, the representative of the Romanian presidency highlighted the importance of the Seven Stars 2025 exercise, namely the upcoming meeting of the deputy chiefs of defense of the SEDM member states, scheduled for June in Sofia, Bulgaria - the last event that Romania will chair under the current mandate. At the same time, it was mentioned that the Hellenic Republic will ensure the continuity of the projects and strategic directions developed and promoted in the last two years.

The Press Office