Joint Statement: Third GUUAM Ministerial Meeting

On May 24, the third meeting of the Council of Ministers for Foreign Affairs of GUUAM Countries (Georgia Ukraine Uzbekistan Azerbaijan Moldova) took place in Tbilisi, Georgia. At the meeting, the delegations from all member countries and the United States continued their dialogue on their common goals of combating terrorism and transnational crime, enhancing border security and customs control, and encouraging trade. The United States was represented at the meeting by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs B. Lynn Pascoe.

The parties discussed the progress in implementation of the GUUAM-U.S. Framework Program, which seeks to generate concrete, multilateral projects to facilitate regional security and economic development. The Framework Program includes a “virtual center” to combat terrorism, drug trafficking and other dangerous types of crime, as well as border security and customs control projects aimed at trade and transportation facilitation. Implementing documents related to these projects will be submitted for signature at the GUUAM Presidential Summit scheduled for July 3-4 in Yalta, Ukraine.

The parties agreed to cooperate in the establishment of the “virtual center” based on the statute elaborated at the meeting of member-nation and U.S. law enforcement officials held in Baku last February. Information exchanges on law enforcement matters will be channeled through a proposed Interstate Information Processing System. The United States is prepared to provide funding for a liaison officer from each of the member countries to draft an implementation program for these programs and, additionally, for two liaison officers from each of the countries to work with U.S. experts on drafting a trade and transportation facilitation action plan.

Member-nation and U.S. senior-level experts will continue to work on the implementation of these projects. The United States commended the group for its commitment to other projects, such as the promotion of a GUUAM Free Trade Area, effective functioning of the GUUAM Information Office in Kiev, enhancement of common border security coordination, and creation of an inter-parliamentary assembly. Both sides looked forward to the new level of joint cooperative projects. The U.S. believes that continued multilateral cooperation in these areas can bring long-term development stability to the Eurasian Corridor.

Released on May 27, 2003