The 17th session of the GUAM Parliamentary Assembly chaired by the Head of the delegation of the Parliament of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the GUAM Parliamentary Assembly was held on March 3, 2025 online in an atmosphere of cooperation and mutual understanding.

The session was attended by parliamentary delegations of all GUAM Member States.

The national delegations of the Parliamentary Assembly welcomed the holding of its Seventeenth Session and reaffirmed the importance that parliamentarians of the GUAM Member States attach to interaction within the Organization as a reliable platform for inter-parliamentary cooperation on the basis of universally recognized norms and principles of international law, strategic interests and importance of economic cooperation and political interaction.

The Parliamentary Assembly reaffirmed its commitment to the Charter and other foundational documents of the GUAM with a view to strengthening the democratic values, the rule of law, human rights and freedoms, stability and security, combating international terrorism, separatism, extremism, and transnational organized crime and achievement of sustainable development and well-being of the peoples of the GUAM Member States.

Against the backdrop of current challenges, the Parliamentary Assembly underlined that cooperation within the GUAM Member States bears even greater significance as they all share common aspiration towards promoting peace and stability in the region.

In the conditions of ongoing violations of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Member States of the Organization, which threatens the security of the region and worldwide, tasks facing the Organization are increasingly demanding for more consolidated, coordinated, focused, result-oriented efforts to withstand new pressures and threats, as well as to utilize emerging opportunities.

The Parliamentary Assembly stressed the need to enhance the role of the ODED-GUAM as a regional instrument in developing our region as the zone of peace, stability, security and cooperation. We should be proactive, our countries should act as the owners, stakeholders, guardians of the region, and in this regard, the GUAM format remains a unique and important instrument in achieving these objectives.

The Parliamentary Assembly reaffirmed its full support for the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of all GUAM Member States within their internationally recognized borders and called upon the international partners to provide their support until a just, comprehensive and lasting peace is reached.

The Parliamentary Assembly declared its intention to take efforts to deepen inter-parliamentary cooperation in order to strengthen and expand partnerships for a demonstration of unity, shared vision and goals, and in this context, the Parliamentary Assembly underscored the importance of further enhancing the visibility of the GUAM as a regional institution dedicated to promoting peace, security and cooperation.

The Parliamentary Assembly took note of the sectoral cooperation in a diverse range of areas in the GUAM framework, continued on a regular basis. The WGs on Coordination of Combating Crime, Cyber Security and Civil Emergency, Working Sub-Groups on Illegal Drug Trafficking, Human Trafficking and Illegal Migrations, Corruption and Money Laundering, Legal Statistics and Terrorism, WGs on Tourism and Science & Education, on Transport, Trade, and Trade and Transport Facilitation Project Steering Committee and others conducted activities along respective Plans of Action.

The Parliamentary Assembly stressed that in consistency and continuity with previous years, the implementation of the concept of Transport Corridor and its promotion as an important international transit route should remain among the priorities of GUAM activities in the following years.

Given growing international importance attached to the development of alternative routes along the East-West corridor in view of China’s “Belt & Road Initiative” (BRI), the Parliamentary Assembly believes that GUAM commitment and efforts will be internationally acknowledged and supported. Wide international cooperation in its implementation will significantly contribute to the promotion of peace, stability, security in this strategically important region. The GUAM TC could play a role of an “icebreaker” in the conflict zones.

The Parliamentary Assembly stated also, that the cooperation in transport shall be complemented by trade facilitation, actualized by implementation of the Agreement on the Establishment of the Free Trade zone among GUAM Member States.

The Parliamentary Assembly was into opinion that the trade potential of the GUAM is far from utilized and it should be a prime task for the Member States to forge the cooperation in trade. The legal and institutional frameworks, namely the “Protocol on the Procedure for the establishment and activities of a working body to coordinate the actions of contracting parties to the Agreement on Creating a Free Trade Zone between GUUAM Member States” and “Protocol on regulations determining the country origin of goods to the Agreement on Creating a Free Trade Zone between GUUAM Member States” are now in force and create a solid basis for implementation in full of the Agreement.

The Parliamentary Assembly expressed its conviction that although by virtue geography and history, the GUAM Member States have been caught at the epicenter of the global geopolitical shifts as wars and conflicts in our region reflect the growing tensions among global and regional actors, profound changes in the region also witnessed important, altering and enhancing its geopolitical significance as a geographical bridge connecting two global powerhouses – Europe and Asia. Realized regional energy and transport projects profoundly changed the GUAM geography’s geopolitical landscape, mapping it as an essential, integral part of the future security and connectivity architecture in the wider Europe, the Black Sea, and the Caspian Sea regions, and far beyond.

The Parliamentary Assembly took note of the outcome of the joint meeting of the profile committees of the GUAM PA.

The Parliamentary Assembly expressed its gratitude to the Parliament of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Secretariat of the Organization for Democracy and Economic Development – GUAM for assistance in holding the session of the Parliamentary Assembly.

The Parliamentary Assembly decided to transfer the Chairmanship of the GUAM PA to Georgia.

The dates and venue of the Eighteenth Session of the GUAM Parliamentary Assembly will be agreed in due course through communication via diplomatic channels.

Adopted 3 March 2025.