Energy security and the situation on the agri-food markets in the context of the war in Ukraine and cooperation with Ukrainian regions are the main topics of the Local Government Three Seas Congress starting in Lublin. This year, the Congress will be accompanied by the Economic Forum, which is to help build strong economic relations.

“Certainly, a lion’s part of the session will be discussed the humanitarian crisis related to refugees, the economic crisis or the issue of the reconstruction of Ukraine after the war”, said Dr Łukasz Lewkowicz from the Maria Curie Skłodowska University.

The Congress will be attended by representatives of government and local government administration, the science and business sector from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary, as well as representatives of strategic partners of the Three Seas Initiative: the European Union, The United States and Germany, and partner regions from Central and Eastern Europe.

“Some countries of the Three Seas Initiative have a direct border with Ukraine, incl. Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. These countries were hit in those first weeks, but the situation is still a humanitarian crisis. Several million refugees from Ukraine came to those EU countries. The Ukrainian infrastructure, cities, roads and energy infrastructure are being destroyed. The host of the future summit in Riga has already announced that the main topic will be Ukraine and the issue of its reconstruction”, noted Dr Lewkowicz.

The congress will also be attended by representatives of ministries, including national defense, state assets, finance, agriculture and rural development, as well as Ukrainian ambassador to Poland Andrij Deshchytsa, US ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski and Borys Wołoshenko – deputy chairman of the Odesa regional military administration.

Arkadiusz Słomczyński