66th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly, Sofia, 24–25 November 2025
The 66th Plenary Session of the PABSEC General Assembly was held in Sofia on 24–25 November 2025 upon the invitation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria.
The Opening Ceremony was addressed by Mr. Dragomir Stoynev, Vice-President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria. Mr. Shalva Papuashvili, Chairman of the Parliament of Georgia, participated as a Special Guest and addressed the participants. Opening remarks were also delivered by Mr. Georg Georgiev, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria and BSEC Chairman-in-Office, Mr. Petar Kanev, Head of the PABSEC Bulgarian Delegation and Mr. Asaf Hajiyev, PABSEC Secretary General.
Parliamentary delegations from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Republic of Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Türkiye and Ukraine took part in the General Assembly. Representatives of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS), the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB), the Union of Road Transport Associations of the BSEC Member States (BSEC-URTA), as well as Special PABSEC Representatives participated in the work of the General Assembly.
Representatives of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the Turkic States (TURKPA), the Parliamentary Union of the OIC Member States (PUIC), and the Regional Secretariat for Parliamentary Cooperation in South-East Europe (RSPC SEE) took part as observers. Representatives of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties (ICAPP) and the International Ayder Forum Association participated as guests.
The Assembly approved the Progress Report of the Assembly and the Minutes of the Sixty-Fifth Plenary Session, and ratified the credentials of the new members of the Assembly from Albania, Armenia, Moldova and Türkiye.
The Assembly elected Mr. Petar Kanev, Head of the PABSEC Bulgarian Delegation, as PABSEC Vice-President for a two-year term.
The Assembly adopted the Draft Budget for the Financial Year 2026 and set the Draft Budget and Auditing Commission.
The Assembly adopted a Joint Statement by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation on the Situation in Gaza and Support for Humanitarian Assistance.
The Assembly took note of the information on the activities of the BSEC Organization presented by Ambassador Lazar Comanescu, Secretary General of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC PERMIS). Representatives of BSEC Related Bodies, parliamentary assemblies and international organizations addressed the Plenary Session.
The Assembly held a General Debate on the topic “Cooperation with the European Union and Other International Regional Organizations.” The Assembly adopted Report and Recommendation 205/2025 “Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Socio-Economic Development in the BSEC Region – Economic Aspects” within the framework of the Committee on Economic and Development Policy; Report and Recommendation 206/2025 “Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Socio-Economic Development in the BSEC Region – Legal Aspects” within the framework of the Committee on Legal Affairs and International Cooperation; and Report and Recommendation 207/2025 “Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Socio-Economic Development in the BSEC Region – Social Aspects” within the framework of the Committee on Social and Humanitarian Policy.
The rotation of the PABSEC Presidency took place from the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria to the Parliament of Georgia.
The next General Assembly will take place in Tbilisi in June 2026.