The three seas initiative as a new important factor in the integration of Central and Eastern Europe

The first initiative for the creation of a close economic and political cooperation between Central and Eastern European countries was undertaken several years after World War I as a response to immediate threats from the two major totalitarian countries – the Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia. The Central and Eastern European countries, which were eventually supposed to unite into federation, were thought of as a potential barrier separating Moscow from Berlin. Lack of agreement in the matter, followed by the outbreak of World War II, put the end to these plans, but the idea of creating a coalition in this region was reborn over a year ago in Dubrovnik, Croatia. There, on 25th-26th August, 2016, on the forum of the Three Seas nations, a declaration of cooperation was signed, which laid the conceptual foundation of the possible future shape of the union. The declaration was key since it was signed by officials representing all twelve nations which are to be part of the possible alliance. The Three Seas Initiative was then described as an informal platform from which to gain political support and organize action towards specific projects, both on the scale of the entire region and transboundary, strategic to countries involved in energy, transport, digital communication and economic policies within Central and Eastern Europe. In the time of Germany’s political domination of the European Union and the Russian Federation‘s aggressive imperialistic aspirations, the old initiative from the interwar period has gained new reasons for its development. It also received strong political support from the president of the United States Donald Trump during his visit in Warsaw, Poland, in July 2017. Presently, the Three Seas is but a handful of socio-political and economic projects to be realized in the near future. In the face of increasing tensions and open conflicts within the European Union, however, the intended cooperation initiative may soon become and institutionalized reality with the paramount goals of shifting the balance of power and changing the geopolitical situation in Europe.