The Mayor of Odessa, Gennadiy Trukhanov, met with the Executive Coordinator of the SECI initiative, Mr. Michael Facecas.
During the dialogue, Mr. Facecas noted that SECI is already actively collaborating with Kharkiv and Mykolaiv. He also took a detailed look at the situation in Odessa and expressed interest in establishing a partnership with the local municipality.
The parties discussed ways to coordinate joint efforts, current challenges, and the humanitarian and technical needs of the city.
International partners have already arrived with several proposals aimed at increasing Odessa's energy independence and are ready to collaboratively seek solutions to critical issues.
The meeting attracted particular attention with the presence of Austrian politician Karl Habsburg-Lothringen, who visited Odessa for the first time alongside his wife, Christiana Nicolau de Almeida Reid Habsburg-Lothringen. Mr. Habsburg-Lothringen expressed hopes for regular visits, highlighting his family's deep historical ties to Ukraine. He also leads the Association of National Committees of the Blue Shield, an international organization focused on protecting cultural heritage threatened by war and natural disasters.
The goals of the SECI initiative:
- stabilizing regions in crisis with the support of international organizations and partner countries;
- creating an effective mechanism for regional cooperation among Southeast European countries to address transnational challenges;
- promoting the integration of regional countries into European and global economic, political, and social processes.
