The panel highlighted the importance of human security, agreeing that there needs to be a move away from only state perspectives of security towards a more holistic approach that prioritizes the well-being of individuals. One of the panel’s conclusions was that risk needs to be shared and managed regionally and that regional cooperation can help sustain international security.

The panelists also agreed that the states of the region need to have a larger socioeconomic focus to mitigate insecurity and that they need to invest more in human capital, health, education, and the economy. Climate change, poverty, and crime were also discussed as important issues for human security, and the panel saw regional cooperation as a great way to tackle these problems.

 

 

Umut Ergezer, SEE2030 Coordinator and Senior Economic Policy Analyst, Regional Cooperation Council, started the discussion by stressing that sustainable development is a key part of regional cooperation. He lamented that the majority of the global population feels insecure, noting that while national security can sacrifice individual lives, human security, which is becoming important for regional cooperation, is instead about the security of individual humans. Ergezer explained that there is an over-securitization of security currently, with more and more topics becoming securitized and over-simplified.

 

 

Konstantinos Androulakis, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Greece in Belgrade, opened with a warning that the world was becoming more dangerous and that conflicts were multiplying, with an immense cost that was mostly paid by civilians. The moderator, Tim Judah, Journalist and author, noted that people feel quite insecure in the region. Mr. Androulakis pointed out that no one can feel safe today, especially in a region such as Southeast Europe, which is vulnerable to the effects of international conflicts. He stated that the promotion of human security requires global and regional cooperation and the increased trust of people in institutions.

 

 

Murat Ersavci, Programme Director, Economic Policy Research Policy Foundation of Turkiye, focused on the interconnected nature of the contemporary world, which gives economic and social issues primary importance. He noted that economic insecurity, youth unemployment, and pollution all pose security threats and that the RCC provides a platform for dialogue and cooperation that could assist in their resolution. Discussing the brain drain of young people, he warned that emigration is not a solution for the region but that instead, there has to be a sustainable peace based on dialogue and collaborative solutions.

 

 

Samir Huseinbašić, Head of Department, Department of Peace and Security, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, mentioned the problem of floods as a good example of the importance of human security, highlighting the need for multilateral and bottom-up approaches. He urged the region to use diplomacy to reach compromise and communication, as everyone needs to work together regionally to support each other for the common security of all people. He also highlighted the importance of risk management for human security, and the need to share risk regionally