Council Resolution on cultural cooperation with Central and Eastern Europe

The Council has adopted a Resolution calling on the Commission to pay increased attention to the cultural dimension of cooperation in its dialogue with the Central and Eastern European countries which have signed "Europe Agreements with the European Union", the so-called assoc...

The Council has adopted a Resolution calling on the Commission to pay increased attention to the cultural dimension of cooperation in its dialogue with the Central and Eastern European countries which have signed "Europe Agreements with the European Union", the so-called associated countries (at present, these are Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, the Slovak Republic, Bulgaria and Romania).

The Council considers that cooperation is important in three particular areas, which the six countries have identified themselves:

- For developing a legal, administrative and management environment which is conducive to expanding cultural and audiovisual activities and exchanges;
- For establishing effective distribution channels within culture industries, such as publishing, records and film;
- For conserving, restoring and enhancing cultural heritage.

The Council therefore calls on the Commission to:

- Give sufficient prominence to restructuring the cultural and audiovisual industries and distribution channels and take account of this in the Phare programme insofar as it is a priority of the relevant associated country;
- Prepare practical measures for the participation of the associated countries in cultural and audiovisual activities;
- Prepare a study, in conjunction with the EBRD and the EIB, of the financial arrangements which might be used within existing structures to fund projects for the culture industry in the associated countries.

Countries

Bulgaria, Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia