By Elena Yaneva Ott, special correspondent for ABC News Transilvania.
SOFIA, Bulgaria – The incoming U.S. administration of Joe Biden is good news for the growing relationship between Romania and Bulgaria. The main reason for optimism is the Three Seas Initiative.
On February 11, US ambassadors from twelve EU member states met in Warsaw to discuss the ways in which the United States can help the Three Seas Initiative, a project that seeks to facilitate interconnectivity on renewable energy, climate change efforts, infrastructure, and digitalization projects in Central and Eastern Europe. The initiative gets its name from the three seas that border the region: the Baltic, Black, and Adriatic Seas. The twelve states that are part of the initiative are Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia.
In June, this partnership will grow when the Three Seas countries hold an important summit in Bulgaria. Also, to celebrate Bulgarian independence day, U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken congratulated all Bulgarians on March 3 and said. “We look forward to working together as you lead the Three Seas Initiative this year, and as we recover from the global pandemic, revive our economies, strengthen our institutions, address shared regional and global challenges, and further develop our strategic partnership.”
Secretary Blinken is surely pleased at this growing partnership between Bucharest and Sofia. For example, both countries must address climate issues. The air in Bulgaria is one of the most polluted in Europe. Even now in 2021, Bulgaria is experiencing “Moderate” air quality according to the data of World Health Organisation (WHO). In a research report of the world’s most polluted countries of 2019, Bulgaria placed 24th and Romania placed 54th. The European Commission is sending a letter of formal notice to Romania, which now has two months to address air pollution shortcomings raised by the Commission.
With this history of badly polluted air, both Romania and Bulgaria are looking to avoid future sanctions and meet the environmental standards of the European Union. This will also help improve the health of its citizens and potentially attract outside investment.
Coal-fired power stations are a source of a third of the world’s carbon dioxide (CO2), as a result of human activity. And while the coal industry does not bear the cost of the damage it causes, people and the planet are paying a heavy price. By investing in the Initiative, both countries will look to modernize their countries with green energy and move away from their history of coal fired plants.
To combat the pollution and enhance the Three Seas Initiative, the Board of the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation approved a $300 million investment in the Initiative.
Specifically, Blinken has express support for Bulgaria’s involvement in this effort. The support of the new U.S administration happened right after the Bulgarian
Development Bank became a shareholder in Three Seas, by investing
20 millions euros in the Initiative. The investment made Bulgaria a cornerstone investor, right next to Poland, Estonia, Hungary, Slovenia and Latvia.
Bulgaria will also replace Estonia as the host of the next Three Seas Summit in 2021. This will also help both Bulgaria and Romania build a more stable environment for future investments. It could also help turn around their poor history of air pollution issues in the region.
The process of building renewable energy sources will also likely pick up speed with the new administration. I expect much greater cooperation between the United States and Europe in the fight against climate change (as shown by the US quickly rejoining the Paris Climate Accord when Biden took office). I would not be surprised, for example, if the Three Seas initiative, previously backed by the Trump Administration to stop the advance of China’s 5G network expansion in Eastern Europe, shifted to funding green initiative projects such as large renewable energy plants, wind farms and green hydrogen.
Working on a green energy infrastructure and policy will benefit both Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and other member states in the initiative. By moving away from highly polluting coal plants, the countries will be able to move closer to European green energy standards and improve the health of their citizens. The environmental and economic benefits of using renewable energy include:
• Generating energy that produces no greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels and reduces some types of air pollution
• Diversifying energy supply and reducing dependence on imported fuels
• Creating economic development and jobs in manufacturing, installation, and more
• Meeting green energy standards for foreign investors
The US investment and backing of the Three Seas Initiative coincides with major investments from highly polluting member states. Green energy investment through the initiative may not only improve the health of citizens and modernize these economies further, but also cement ties on green energy with the new US administration.
Editor is Dan Shomon, U.S. correspondent.
