30th OSCE Economic and Environmental Forum, 8 – 9 September 2022, Prague

1. The European Union and its Member States would like to thank the Polish Chairmanship, and Ambassador Hasani and his team, for organising this meeting under difficult circumstances, as well as the Czech Republic for kindly hosting us in the Czernin Palace. We would also like to express our thanks to the speakers, who offered interesting perspectives from the private sector, academia and civil society, to the moderators for stimulating our debates and to all participants for their insightful contributions.

2. We have listened with interest to the interventions stressing the urgency of decarbonising our economies and reducing our environmental footprint through green investments and international co-operation. Some highlighted the need to engage the private sector and civil society in good economic governance and underlined the importance of adapting skills, knowledge and competences of our workers in order to move forward. We have discussed efforts to accelerate the green energy transition and ways to ensure energy security, including by increasing the use of renewables, diversifying energy suppliers and strengthening the resilience of critical energy networks. We also attach great importance to easing global food insecurity, which hampers global efforts to rebuild our economies. The interactive panel discussion on the 30th anniversary of this Forum provided a valuable opportunity to exchange our views on the way ahead for the EEF and the second dimension more broadly.

3. In the past two days, we also appreciated hearing many voices underlining the

importance of helping to rebuild Ukraine’s economy, which is being severely damaged

by Russia’s war of aggression. We will not cease to repeat the undeniable fact that this war blatantly violates international law, the UN Charter and the fundamental OSCE principles and commitments. The European Union hails the courage and determination of the Ukrainian people and its leadership in their fight to defend the sovereignty, territorial integrity and freedom of their country and build a peaceful, democratic and prosperous future within the European family.

4. The dialogue over the past two days illustrated above all that disruptions in our societies, including man-made ones, present us with opportunities to build a better, more resilient, inclusive and sustainable future for the next generation. We have ample confirmation that through green investments and modern technologies, we can strengthen competitiveness, enhance inclusivity and boost social fairness in our economies and societies.

5. In conclusion, let me reaffirm the EU's readiness to continue engaging constructively in discussions on economic and environmental issues that have an impact on the security situation in the OSCE area. We are looking forward to continuing our dialogue in Second Dimension Committee meetings and the Economic and Environmental Dimension Implementation meeting in Vienna. We would also like to express our appreciation to the OCEEA and the Czech Republic for organising interesting side events, which were a valuable addition to our discussions within this Economic and Environmental Forum.

The Candidate Countries MONTENEGRO*, ALBANIA*, UKRAINE and REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA, the Potential Candidate Countries BOSNIA and HERZEGOVINA* and GEORGIA, the EFTA countries ICELAND and NORWAY, members of the European Economic Area, as well ANDORRA, and SAN MARINO align themselves with this statement.

* Montenegro, Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue to be part of the Stabilisation and Association Process.