Romanian president attends inaugural Carpathian Integration Initiative summit in Ukraine

President Nicușor Dan will attend the inaugural summit of the Carpathian Integration Initiative in Ukraine’s Ivano-Frankivsk region on Friday, September 18. He is participating at the invitation of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, the Romanian Presidential Administration announced.

The initiative seeks to bring together representatives from the countries crossed by the Carpathian Mountains: Austria, Czechia, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Hungary, and Ukraine. Other partners involved in regional cooperation are also expected to participate.

The summit will focus on developing the region’s economic potential, attracting investment, protecting and promoting its cultural and natural heritage, and strengthening regional cohesion.

Nicușor Dan, Volodymyr Zelensky and the other participating heads of state and government will also open the Carpathian Economic Forum. Related events include a youth forum, meetings between local authorities, and discussions on cultural cooperation and nature conservation.

President Dan is expected to emphasize that Romania contains the longest section of the Carpathian arc and accounts for more than half of the mountain range’s total European area, the Presidency said. He will argue that the initiative should build on existing cooperation and good-neighbourly relations, promote trade and investment, and support projects that directly benefit local communities.