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Bruxelles - In his capacity as envoy of the Speaker of the Croatian Parliament, the Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Joško Klisović attended the 10th Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership Meeting (ASEP 10) hosted by the European Parliament. ASEP's meetings precede the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and are held every two years, alternately in Europe and in Asia.
ASEP 10 brought together around three hundred participants from 43 countries and the European Parliament to exchange opinions on climate change and the related challenges facing Asia and Europe. The three simultaneous panels discussed the impact of climate change on migrations, security and economy. Other topics included the relationship between climate change and sustainable development and circular economy, urban area management, cooperation in water resources management, waste treatment, plastic reduction, food safety and clean technologies.
Klisović took part in the work of the Preparatory and drafting committee tasked with finalizing the draft ASEP 10 Declaration and in the panel discussing the impact of climate change on migration. Bearing in mind the interconnectedness of climate change and migration, he emphasized the role and responsibility of parliamentarians in raising awareness of the long-term threats to climate change and noted the need to motivate governments more vigorously with the aim of generating sufficient political will to implement the right measures to address this issue. In this respect, it is of utmost importance to strengthen international cooperation since no single country can solve these global problems alone nor can it offer its citizens the necessary level of security. He stressed that Croatia, as a country on the external border of the European Union, should use its Presidency of the Council of the European Union to raise awareness of this issue and intensify European activities and debate to prepare the EU's appropriate response to the crisis we are facing.
The meeting was concluded by adopting the Declaration of the 10th Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership Meeting, which, following the ASEP Rules of procedure, will be submitted to the 12th ASEM Summit (ASEM 12) to be held in Brussels on 18 and 19 October 2018.