The President of the Government of the Azores defended today the reinforcement of cooperation between 150 regions that make up the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) and European institutions in order to use the potential of the European Maritime Policy for the benefit of the regions and their populations.

"Our biggest challenge is to know how to use this potential for the benefit of our regions and their populations, which should be through the reinforcement of our efforts and the exchange of knowledge and good practices in areas such as blue biotechnology, marine and maritime research, naval industry, employment and training, maritime and coastal tourism, and fisheries," said Vasco Cordeiro.

The President spoke after being elected President of CPMR in the Swedish city of Umea on Thursday. This interregional cooperation body is made up of 28 European States, comprising nearly 200 European citizens.

The mission of CPMR is to defend the interests of its members within national and European institutions, through the promotion of territorial cohesion and regional power in Europe as well as through the reinforcement of the peripheral and maritime dimension of the European Union.

In his first speech as President of CPMR, Vasco Cordeiro noted that this is the moment for the organisation to strengthen its proactive attitude, taking into account the second phase of development of the Integrated Maritime Policy.

In this regard, he defended the CPMR should use its network of member-regions, as well as its knowledge and experience to demonstrate to a wider European level, the possibilities of so-called 'blue growth' and the potential for development of activities related to the sea, without neglecting the environmental aspects of its implementation.

"The maritime territory of the CPMR member regions has an enormous potential for growth and development that will benefit Europe, providing unique advantages that result from its maritime and peripheral nature, its diversity and its political and institutional relevance," said the President of the Government.

According to Vasco Cordeiro, the so-called "blue growth," therefore, represents a priority for the CPMR, under a strategy that is closely linked to innovation, research, development of new technologies and marketable products, taking advantage of the biological, mineral and energy resources of the sea.

As regards to the Cohesion Policy, as the wider implementation of the Partnership Agreements and Operational Programmes approaches, CPMR should pay special attention to difficulties faced by our regions in this 2014-2020 period, protecting its interests and clarifying relevant matters with the European Commission and preparing, in due time, the next period of negotiations.

In this matter, and as resulted from our debate yesterday, what is important is to underline our commitment to the pursuit of a harmonious development of Europe that respects the different realities of our regions and delivers concrete results for our citizens, particularly the youngest ones.

"If we, as leaders, fail towards this generation we will fail in the objective of ensuring that hope and development are the building blocks of this joint project," said the government official.

In this sense, Vasco Cordeiro said it is also time for CPMR to prioritize an action in favour of the principles of solidarity, cohesion and territoriality, which have been undermined in recent years and to continue to serve as the advocate of these principles in Brussels.

This territorial dimension is also clearly linked to the work to be undertaken in the field of accessibilities in order to create a non-discriminatory and integrated transport network in Europe, a network that should serve peripheral and maritime regions," said Vasco Cordeiro.