This document summarizes the outcomes of three workshops from the European Border Dialogue in Sortavala, Finland. The first workshop discussed regional cooperation across the border between Sortavala, Russia and Central Karelia, Finland. Cooperation has grown since the 1980s and a border crossing was opened in 1994. The Interreg program has also supported joint projects. The second workshop focused on learning from other EU regions' experiences with Euregions. Ensuring financial resources and the competence of Euregion organizations was discussed. The third workshop recommended overcoming political challenges by focusing on concrete people-to-people projects and involving civil society.

1. European Border Dialoque;
Outcomes of the Sortavala
workshops
20.11.2013

2. Topics of the workshops
•
Regional and local level cooperation across the border
•
Euregions: Learning from experience
•
Overcoming political challenges in CBC

3. Workshop 1 :
Regional and local level cooperation accross
the border

4. Content of the workshop
•
Practical examples of CBC : case Sortavala
• Also experiences from Euregion Dniester and Barents cooperation
were touched
•
Discussion:
• How to develop cooperation cross the border?
• Prerequisities for the cooperation: border crossings

5. Development of the CBC in Sortavala
•
1988 twincity cooperation started
•
1994 opening of the international border crossing point WärtsiläNiirala
•
1996: First Interreg III A Karelia Programme was opened:
stakeholders from Sortavala region actively involved
•
2006 Agreement between the Sortavala (RU) and Central-Karelia
municipalities (FI): started regular annual meetings and joint
activities
•
Situation now: diverse cooperation with Finnish partners cross the
border

6. How to develop the cooperation cross the border?
Maturity
Implementation
Joint Decisions
Strategy / planning
Coordination / structures
Sharing information
Getting to know each other
Project results
and policy impacts

7. Prerequisity of cooperation
•
Access gross the border
• Fluency of border crossings (balance with the security)
• Visa freedom
• Actions needed to improve the infrastructure, train the
personnel, improve the techniques on the border,
modernize the procedures
• Active interaction between the border officials and regional +
national level authorities

8. Recommendations
•
Ensure the ownership to the cooperation: success of the
cooperation always depends on the people.
•
Be ambitious and brave: in order to benefit of the cooperation you need
to take steps forward
•
Learn from experiences!
•
Use the available tools

9. Workshop 2 :
Euregions: learning from experience

10. Key notes / questions
•
•
•
•
•
•
How to make the cooperation usefull: identify the conditions and
motivation for the cooperation
Analyse the compatibility of regions
Ensure the competence of the Euregio; right to sign the agreements etc
Ensure that the Euregio organisation has a capacity to work and fullfill
its tasks
Lobby towards national level (+ international)
Ensure the financial resources for the cooperation

11. Recommendations / questions to be solved
•
How to institutionalize the experiences that different regions have
about the cooperation?
•
The measurable data of the experiences of different Euregions
should be collected
•
Use the Euregio Karelia model to build up connections between
Euregio activities and financing instruments (ENPI / ENI CBC
Programmes)

12. Workshop 3 :
Overcoming political challenges

13. Recommendations
1) Look for ways leading to people to people projects
Such ways must be based on very concrete project connecting people.
2) Prepare, develop and realize projects based on common and concrete
interests of people living in appropriate regions.
3) Define a level on which it is necessary to discuss prospective cooperation. Find mediators for such negotiations and to try to launch
negotiations.
.
4) Analyze current activities of civil society in this direction and propose
them to take part in cbc initiatives
5) Continue to analyse the experiences with similar situations in other
regions. Learn which elements are transferable and to try use them.

14. Thank you for your attention!