Our Three Seas Initiative Research Center recently held a scientific seminar on January 23. The seminar, titled “The Status of the Three Seas Initiative from the Perspective of International Law, International Relations and Political Science” was conceived during our internal reflections on the essence of how the Three Seas Initiative functions. The main concern is the status of 3SI’s subjectivity, as the format lacks essential documents defining the mechanisms and framework for its operation.
Since 3SI was not established under a special international agreement regulating the principles of its activities, it is not considered an international organization in the context of international law. Furthermore, its officially articulated goals, decision-making method, and organizational structure cannot be clearly defined. Though the declarations concluding the summits of the Three Seas Initiative are not legally binding documents, they hold significant political weight. The seminar aimed to discuss the legal status and subjectivity of the Three Seas Initiative and outline potential directions for the development and institutionalization of this format.
We were fortunate to have a diverse group of speakers at the seminar who shared their insights on the topic:
• Dr. Tomáš Strážay – Slovak Foreign Policy Association (SFPA) – “3SI from a political science/international relations perspective”;
• Dr. Ieva Gajauskaite – Military Academy of Lithuania – “The institutionalization of the Three Seas Initiative and the enhancement of resilience against hybrid threats”;
• Dr. Peter Techet – – Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe – with speech regarding how International and EU Law can consider, formalize, understand this kind of cooperations like 3SI; 3SI in the challenges between EU and USA;
• Dr. Agata Kleczkowska – Institute of Law Studies Polish Academy of Science – “Status of the Three Seas Initiative in International Law”;
The discussion was spearheaded by Dr. Damian Szacawa, who hails from the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin. Jędrzej Błaszczak, on the other hand, represented our Three Seas Initiative Research Center. The guest list comprised scientists from Slovakia and Lithuania, diplomats involved in the Three Seas Initiative, and experts and professors from Poland.
