Poland Has Everything to Gain by Participating in the Three Seas Initiative

Poland has everything to gain by developing and promoting the Three Seas Initiative which brings together twelve sovereign countries in Central and Eastern Europe. In the history of most countries, opportunities such as this Initiative have not cropped up often. In fact, very rarely. This historic chance puts Poland in the geostrategic centre of Europe.
 
This year’s summit is going to take place in Bucharest on 17-18 September and it will be the third meeting of the member states, following the summit in Dubrovnik in 2016 and in Warsaw in 2017. The agenda includes for the first time a group of business people which is a step into the right direction because the region needs stronger ties of trade and commerce.
 
The summit is also set to ratify a series of top-priority cooperation projects in the fields of transports, energy and IT, meant to boost the economic development of states in the region, to set up a network of chambers of commerce and to encourage the creation of an investment fund for the Initiative.
 
The Three Seas Initiative is the modern-day and much more successful manifestation of the inter-war "Intermarium", making it among Poland’s most meaningful contributions ever to European geopolitics. "Intermarium" (the Polish name Międzymorze meaning "Between-seas") was the idea proposed in the 1920s by Jozef Piłsudski as the federation of states which was meant to emulate the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The concept of federation did not work at the end but the idea of cooperation of sovereign states was very inspiring to many people as a driving force of the region. No wonder, it was reopened again in 2015 as a forum for countries located between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black Sea, stretching from Estonia in the north to Bulgaria in the south.
 
The Initiative seeks to strengthen links in Central and Eastern Europe, with an emphasis on the north-south axis, which has previously been neglected. In a joint statement adopted at the initiative’s first summit, held in Dubrovnik in August 2016, the countries expressed their conviction that by expanding the existing cooperation in energy, transportation, digital communication and economic sectors, Central and Eastern Europe will become more secure, safe and competitive.
 
As Poland gears up for this year’s Three Seas Initiative summit in September, the United States has reiterated its support for the Initiative. The summit will bring together heads of state from Central and South-Eastern Europe, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker as well as top-level officials from the United States and representatives of international and European financial institutions.
 
The summit held in Warsaw last July, was attended by US President Donald Trump. “America is eager to expand our partnership with you,” said Trump, addressing the twelve countries’ leaders in Warsaw. “We welcome stronger ties of trade and commerce as you grow your economies and we are committed to securing your access to alternate sources of energy so Poland and its neighbors are never again held hostage to a single supplier of energy.”
 
The benefits for Poland are already visible. Via Carpathia which is going to link Baltic states with southern Europe is under construction. Baltic pipe is a unique opportunity for Poland to become a regional power broker. The plans for the construction of the central airport near Łodź have been disclosed, which would act as the hub for the region.