20th Anniversary Summit of the Heads of State or Government of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) was held in Istanbul on 26 June 2012. H.E. Mr. Abdullah Gül, President of Turkey and H.E. Mr. Tomislav Nikoliç, the President of Serbia, co-chaired the Summit as the two consecutive Chairmen-in-Office of BSEC in 2012.

In the light of the global and regional economic developments, developing a new vision for the BSEC with a view to increasing the efficiency and visibility of the organization was the main agenda item of the Summit. In this veinThe BSEC Economic Agenda (Vision 2020) which defines the priority areas of action for the next 10 years was adopted at the Summit. The document which lays out the BSEC’s vision for 2020 in the fields of trade, transportation, energy, communication, science and technology, tourism and education holds key for more effective use of the rich human and natural resources of the wider Black Sea area on the basis of sustainable development and more functional cooperation.

Moreover, İstanbul Summit Declaration which is a political instruction document to shape the future of the BSEC was also adopted on the occasion of the 20th Anniversary Summit.

On the other hand, an Academic Forum was held in collaboration with Center for Strategic Studies of Foreign Ministry of Turkey and Black Sea Universities Network (BSUN) with the participation of academics from 12 member states on 25 June 2012. Academics made presentations concerning a new vision for the future of the BSEC from the perspective of their own countries.