€100 billion to develop regions from Baltic to Black Sea

An investment fund worth €100 billion will help the financing of common transport infrastructure, energy, and digital economy projects in the region between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black Seas, according to an agreement signed by Slovakia with five other countries (Czech Republic, Romania, Croatia, Latvia and Poland) on Tuesday. The agreement is part of the so called "Initiative of the three seas," a gathering of 12 countries in the region whose leaders have met in Bucharest, joined by the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker. The fund, which will be co-managed by development banks in the member states, is expected to bankroll around 30 projects including the modernisation of railways corridors, gas pipelines, as well as monitoring the quality of sea waters.