State Secretary Stanislav Raščan underlined the importance of multilateral cooperation between the European Union and the OACPS, which is one of the priorities of the Slovenian Presidency of the Council of the EU. Joint initiatives, such as this event, will serve to enhance the EU-OACPS Partnership even more. 

The EU and OACPS have enjoyed a long tradition of cooperation in environmental matters as the fight against climate change is among their common key priorities. The European Green Deal is an important part of implementing the EU’s climate policies that at the same time offers an incentive for cooperation with OACPS countries in this field.

State Secretary Raščan pointed out Slovenia’s efforts as the country presiding over the Council of the EU to bring a successful conclusion to the COP26 conference. Together we strive to contribute to a better, greener, more sustainable and fairer future for all. He also noted that an important turning point of EU-OACPS relations lies ahead of us because a new Partnership Agreement is expected to be signed in the early 2022 (also known as the Post-Cotonou Agreement), which will further deepen cooperation in the environment and climate change.