Establishment date : 25 June 2022

Headquarters : İstanbul

Secretary General : Lazar Comanescu (Romania)

Official Languages : English and Russian.

Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) was established at the Istanbul Summit on June 25, 1992. Türkiye has played a proactive role in the establishment of the BSEC, which has since become a comprehensive regional organization. The Permanent International Secretariat (PERMIS) of BSEC is located in İstanbul.

BSEC Member States: Albania, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, the Russian Federation, Serbia, Türkiye, Ukraine and Greece.

Serbia has been holding the BSEC Chairmanship-in-Office since 1 January 2023. Türkiye will take over the Chairmanship-in-Office from 1 July 2023.

Objectives of the Organization: BSEC aims to diversify and further develop bilateral and multilateral economic, technological and social relations among its Member States by taking advantage of their potential, geographical proximity, and complementary features of their economies, thus making the wider Black Sea basin a region of peace, stability and prosperity. The main tool chosen to achieve this goal is economic cooperation.

BSEC Council of Foreign Ministers: The Council of Foreign Ministers, which is the sole decision-making body of BSEC, convenes twice a year by the Chairmanship-in-office.

BSEC Related Bodies: Parliamentary Assembly of Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), International Center for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS) and BSEC Business Council (BC) are related bodies under the umbrella of BSEC.

Relations of Türkiye with the Organization: Türkiye took an active role in the establishment of the BSEC, the most inclusive international organization of the Black Sea region, and has been actively participating in its activities, in addition to hosting its Secretariat in Istanbul. Türkiye works for the implementation of concrete cooperation projects within BSEC framework.

Ambassador Merve Safa Kavakcı currently serves as First Deputy Secretary General of BSEC.

BSEC Working Groups: Within BSEC, 19 Working Groups operate as auxiliary bodies on various subjects, primarily trade and economy, transportation, energy, communication, science and technology.

BSEC Anniversary Summits: The 10th, 15th, 20th and 25th Anniversary Summits of BSEC were held in Istanbul.