BSEC represents a huge market of some 350 million people with a foreign trade capacity of over 300 billion US dollars annually. Due to its geographical location, the BSEC region is an attractive destination for both trade and investment.
Since it was established in November 1992, the BSEC Working Group on Trade and Economic Development has considered a wide range of issues relating to the trade exchanges and economic cooperation in the Black Sea region. In February 1997, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and the Ministers responsible for economic affairs from the BSEC Member States adopted the Declaration of intent for the establishment of a BSEC free trade area. The Member States agreed to start the examination of the ways and means to establish progressively a BSEC Free Trade Area as part of the European architecture through free trade agreements between the members of the BSEC , as well as through similar future arrangements and existing links between the BSEC members and the European Union, taking into account the European Agreements and relevant provisions of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreements between them, duly observing the obligations resulting from EU and WTO, and other international organizations and arrangements.
Last meeting of the Working Group held in February 2008 considered the possibility to create a preferential trade regime in the BSEC region. Due to different status of the BSEC Member States regarding their membership in the EU and WTO as well their trade obligations towards third parties, the participants suggested that it is more reasonable now to concentrate on trade facilitation rather than on trade liberalization or preferential trade. The Working Group also considered the issue of establishing an appropriate mechanism for elimination of non-tariff barriers on trade in the BSEC region. At the initial stage it was agreed that the public or private organizations would report to the BSEC Business Council any trade barriers in the Member States.
DECLARATION OF INTENT FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BSEC FREE TRADE AREA, Istanbul 7 February 1997.