Washington, D.C., September 19, 2023.- Matthew Miller, Department Spokesperson.-The United States was among 32 coastal Atlantic countries to adopt the Declaration on Atlantic Cooperation and launch the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation. This new multilateral forum brings together coastal Atlantic countries across Africa, Europe, North America, South America, and the Caribbean to engage in collective problem-solving and uphold a set of shared principles for Atlantic cooperation. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and leaders from the other participating states launched this new initiative at the Ministerial for Atlantic Cooperation on the margins of the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York. Participants also adopted a Plan of Action outlining the grouping’s first phase of work.
The Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation is the first Atlantic-based grouping to include both the North and South Atlantic and address a broad range of issues on shared priorities. It seeks to usher in a new chapter in regional cooperation, notably on sustainable development and science and technology. The purpose is twofold — one, to unite the community of Atlantic states around a framework to engage more effectively, and two, to articulate a set of guiding principles for Atlantic cooperation, as outlined in the Declaration on Atlantic Cooperation.