102nd session of the Danube Commission (23 January 2025)
On 23 January 2025, the Danube Commission (DC) continued its deliberations of the 102nd session, under the presidency of the Representative of Bulgaria to the Danube Commission, H.E. Mr. Ambassador Christo Polendakov, at the premises of the Danube Commission in Budapest.
At the outset of the meeting, the Commission strongly condemned the series of Russian drone attacks against civilian targets and port infrastructure in Ukraine, on the morning of 17 January, which violated international law and the free and safe navigation on the Danube. The Commission recalled that the decision of the 12th Extraordinary Session (doc. DC/SES-XII Extr./3) imposed on Russia the economic damage already incurred and continuing to be incurred from the reduced transport and transhipment activities along the entire Danube due to the military dangers in the Danube Delta and the Black Sea.
During the closed part of the 102nd session, delegations addressed a number of legal questions on their agenda, as part of the reform process of the organization. Participants agreed to establish English as working language, alongside German, at all Danube Commission meetings starting on 1 July 2026. The Danube States approved a new procedure for the selection of their councillors in the Secretariat which provides for a public tender and a competitive procedure to increase the transparency and efficiency of the Commission.
The financial aspects of the activity of the Danube Commission were also analyzed. The delegations debated and approved the budget for 2025, including the issue of the accumulated debt and penalties of the Russian Federation which amount to 371,373.27 euros, for the period 2018-2024.
