771^st meeting - 31 October 2001

Item 9.1

International co-operation at regional level
Recommendation 99 (2001) of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE)
(CLRAE Rec_99(2001))

Decision

The Deputies adopted the following reply to Recommendation 99 (2001) of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe on “international co-operation at regional level”:

“1. The Committee of Ministers shares the Congress’s opinion that co-operation between regions in Europe makes an “important contribution… to democratic and political stability in the member states and to their economic, environmental, cultural and social development”.

2. Through its activities in the field of transfrontier co-operation, the Council of Europe encourages and promotes the setting up of co-operation bodies between regions such as the “Euroregions” whose contribution to democratic stability, enhanced multilateral co-operation and mutual understanding deserves to be acknowledged.

3. As regards the “regional dimension [in] the Organisation’s intergovernmental activities”, it is ensured through the participation of the Congress in many Steering and Expert committees, the consultation of the Congress by the Committee of Ministers on draft legal texts, and the Congress’s attendance at Conferences of specialised ministers, such as the Conference of European Ministers responsible for Local Government.

4. The Congress is obviously free to appoint delegations to these committees and conferences delegations whose composition reflects the regional dimension of the issues under consideration or the contribution of regions to the solution of the problems debated.

5. As regards the place of the Congress in the implementation of programmes of assistance and co-operation in favour of the Council of Europe’s new member states, the Committee of Ministers is aware of the important contribution that the Congress already makes, through its own budget and projects, to the consolidation of local and regional democracy in Europe.

6. The issue of local democracy features prominently in the various bilateral and joint programmes that the Council of Europe conducts, also in co-operation with the European Commission, in many member and non member states. It is for the states concerned, of course, to request assistance specifically directed at the setting up of regional tiers of government.”