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The program Security in the Black Sea Region: Shared Challenges, Sustainable Future (SBSR) took place in the period May 22-26, 2023, in Bucharest.

The 2023 edition was organized, in partnership, by the Romanian Intelligence Service through “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy (ANIMV) and European Security and Defence College (ESDC) – this year’s program being a pilot course, affiliated with ESDC.

The program brought together approximately 70 participants and 21 lecturers, of which 10 occupying positions of national or EU officials and 11 researchers and professors from academia, at national and international level.

The opening speech belonged to:

• Iulian FOTA – state secretary for strategic affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs;
• Cristian CIOBANU – deputy director of the Integrated Intelligence Office within the Presidential Administration;
• Lieutenant-general Cristian BIZADEA, deputy director of the Romanian Intelligence Service.

The program addressed the following discussion topics:

• The EU integrated approach to security – EU Strategic Compass
• The EU strategic environment – main security factors and drivers of change in the Black Sea Region
• Risk containment strategies and development of peace and security in the Black Sea Region
• Prevention of hybrid security threats in the Black Sea Region

The daily agenda included thematic practical sessions, developed on the discussion panels mentioned above. The last day represented the peak of the program, through the discussions about the impressions and conclusions of the event.

The diploma award ceremony ended the SBSR 2023 edition.

The Romanian Intelligence Service, through the “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy organized the 8th edition of the program “Security in the Black Sea Region”. Shared challenges, sustainable future (SBSR). This year’s concluding panel focused on ”Fractured Digital Futures: AI in service or against democracies?” and was hosted by the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine of Bucharest.

Organised under the high patronage of the Romanian Presidential Administration, the workshop included a debate session, attended by personalities representing the academic and diplomatic environment, along with security experts, but also a practical exercise to develop alternative scenarios for possible futures, in order to identify solutions for integrating “Artificial Intelligence” tools in democratic societies.

The exercise addressed topics such as Generation Z and Mind-Reading Technology, the Fifth Industrial Revolution and the global gap between digital and non-digital communities or information manipulation and non-regulation of digital behavior.

SBSR, a program initiated by Harvard University in 1997, is part of the overall development objectives of the “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy in the scientific research field and the participants, experts in regional security, facilitated the organisation of several sessions on promoting national interests, exchange of expertise and advancing key messages relevant to Romania’s foreign policy.

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Hybrid times require hybrid formats. Thus, in order to keep up with the good tradition and continue to contribute to the sustainability of the Black Sea Region, “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy (ANIMV) organized the 7^th edition of the international training program Security in the Black Sea Region. Shared challenges, sustainable future (SBSR) in three different segments: two online and one onsite, with physical and online attendance.

While focusing on a quite specific target for our trainees – emerging leaders in intelligence and security – this year’s theme of debate was Strategic Communication to Counter Security Threats in the Disinformation Era, addressed during:

1. an interactive online course which took place during June 1^st – July 13^th, 2020, designed through the CRESCENT project – Mind the gap in media CoveRagE and Strategic Communication in CasE of Security Threats;
2. a webinar on hybrid warfare, which took place on August 5^th, 2020 – the debates focused on lessons learned and practices used by policy makers in order to build a strategy to counter hybrid threats. The event gathered both academics (Professor Ruben Arcos, University “Rey Juan Carlos”; Professor Iulian Fota, Director, Romanian Diplomatic Institute) and representatives of transnational institutions (Mr. Jose Morgado, Director of EU Intelligence and Situation Centre; Mr. Costinel Anuța, Counsellor, Permanent Delegation of Romania to NATO);
3. an interactive workshop held in Bucharest, Romania, on September 3^rd, 2020, during the Black Sea and The Balkans Dialogue Week, as a back-to-back event with the New Strategy Center’s Black Sea and the Balkans Forum.

The event allowed participants and speakers to attend physically or virtually, the onsite sessions being live-streamed via the Cisco Webex platform.

This year, the SBSR Program was addressed to emerging young leaders on the Black Sea Region and the Balkans area, therefore its last phase focused on identifying strategies to build secure societies within the region and create resilience to hybrid threats. A special mentoring session was delivered at the end of the Program. Among the invited speakers were: Lt. Gen. Mihai ȘOMORDOLEA, State Adviser, Secretary of the Supreme Council of National Defence; Brig. Gen. Cristian BIZADEA, Deputy Director, Romanian Intelligence Service; Professor Adrian-Liviu IVAN, Rector, “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy; HE Ambassador Sorin DUCARU, Honorary Chairman of the Scientific Board of the New Strategy Centre, Director of the European Union Satellite Centre; Mr. Dan NECULĂESCU, State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Associate Professor Corneliu BJOLA, Department of International Development, University of Oxford; Professor Alina BÂRGĂOANU, Dean, Faculty of Communication and Public Relations, National University of Political Studies and Public Administration; Mr. Greg MELCHER, Chief Operations Officer, New Generation Warfare Centre.

Organized under the high patronage of the Romanian Presidential Administration, the Program benefited from important partners, such as Harvard University and the New Strategy Center.

Lecturers and participants from the Black Sea Region and the Western Balkans, USA, and Europe attended the Program.

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“Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy organized, during June 11t – 12, the sixth edition of the international training program “Security in the Black Sea Region. Shared challenges, sustainable future” (SBSR), in Constanta, presenting as main topic: “The New Great Game – connecting the Black Sea and the Balkans”.

Organized under the high patronage of the Romanian Presidential Administration, the Program benefited from the support of our two main partner universities – Harvard University and the National Intelligence University (NIU). Lecturers and participants from the Black Sea Region and the Western Balkans, USA, Europe, NATO and the EU attended the Program, representing the academic environment, security and intelligence services, External Affairs and Defense Ministries.

In order to provide the participants with the opportunity to approach the main issues of the two Regions from multiple angles, this year’s edition was set as a back-to-back event with the Black Sea and Balkans Forum, underpinning a wide dialogue and knowledge platform, which aims to create interinstitutional connections, needed for a mutual perception of the future developments of the regions.

As mister Brigadier General Cristian BIZADEA, the deputy director of the Romanian Intelligence Service, pointed out in the opening ceremony, the purpose of this edition is to connect the strategic dots of the two regions, in order to sustain a common message promoting the importance of mutual understanding and cooperation, through a permanent interchange of innovative ideas and good practices, in the prevention and countering of the regional threats.

Within the four thematic panels, the regional security challenges have been evaluated, undertaking an academic approach, by integrating the political, economic, socio-cultural, national and regional security coordinates, offering an interactive dimension during the four sessions of applied exercises, dedicated to advancing and building public policy recommendation and possible solutions to turn the regional threats into opportunities. These were completed by two round tables dedicated to NATO and to the EU visions regarding the aimed topics.

This sixth edition of SBSR was closed by the award ceremony, hosted by the rector of the Academy, professor Adrian-Liviu IVAN, overlooking an academic program that has constantly evolved and adapted to both more dynamic and complex security challenges and to the practitioner’s needs, by offering an interdisciplinary knowledge base, integrating the innovations in the intelligence and security fields.

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The 5^th edition of the international training program Security in the Black Sea Region. Shared challenges, sustainable future, took place between 28^th and 31^st of May, 2018. The anniversary edition represented, taking into consideration organizational standards, progress and follow-up, a benchmark in the development of the program as a fully-developed one.

SBSR has already become a traditional event, an international mark of two universities, Harvard University, which initiated the program in 1997 and the ”Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy, the Romanian successor.

Like the previous editions, SBSR 2018 was addressed to the public leadership sector, to academia and to diplomatic representatives, to security experts, intelligence practitioners, representatives from ministries of defence and external affairs from the Black Sea Region, USA and the European state partners, featuring over 80 participants and lecturers, following all along the core principles of the original program.

The main themes approached during this edition have been clustered together under the main subject of interest for the states from this region – The Future of the Black Sea Region: Gamechangers and Predictors. The agenda was adapted to the current geopolitical developments and trends, thus building a complex picture consisting of hybrid threats, state resilience, fake news and disinformation, strategic rationale and policy strategic planning. These elements were complemented with a workshop provided by Peregrine Leadership Institute, entitled Value-based leadership in the BSR.

The roundtables were followed by five sessions of interactive exercises, aiming at building forecast scenarios for the Black See Region’s development, as well as formulating policy recommendations, based on pre-established dimensions: political and economic, social and cultural, national and regional security.

The outcome of the three teams, as well as the Background paper used to contextualize the process of scenario building can be found here: SBSR 2018 Outcome.

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“Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy is proud to announce the end of the fourth edition of the international training program “Security in the Black Sea Region. Shared challenges, Sustainable future”, organized in partnership with Harvard University and the National Intelligence University (US), under the auspices of the Romanian Presidential Administration. This year, we celebrated 20 years of international and multilateral training dedicate to the Black Sea region, for SBSR program has taken over and developed the philosophy, mission and objectives of the Black Sea Security regional program initiated by Harvard University.

The lectures, the debates as well as the cultural and social events took place in Bucharest from May 28^th to June 2^nd, 2017, with more than 70 participants from 14 countries from the Black Sea region, as well as from partner countries with an interest in the area. Representatives of the European and NATO forums also accepted our invitation to take part in the program, bringing complementary perspectives to the table.

The themes addressed were presented by renowned experts within six panels and later debated and deepened in six exercise sessions. The exercises were organized in an academic, interactive and dynamic format, with small multinational teams acting as promoters of different points of view and approaches. The themes discussed were:

1. (Dis)Continuities in the Black Sea Region. Power projection, attribution and control;
2. Rethinking strategies for peace building;
3. New ecologies of conflict – what’s at stake?;
4. Democracy – defining and refining the practice of community;
5. Representations of majorities, minorities and identity politics.The narrative and the secretive;
6. Performing identities and communities – whose story the (new) media tells.

The dynamic format gave researchers, policymakers and practitioners the proper framework for authentic communication, but also for creating a sustainable vision based on the principle of common welfare in the region. The challenges of the exercise sessions, which involved the formulation of policy recommendations, have been overcome by developing strategies and shaping integrated trans-disciplinary visions on the discussed topics.

The main speakers, together with all the participants, are now part of a distinct community of alumni and members of a platform where ideas are discussed, strategies are created and pragmatic innovation is encouraged. Together, we have created and consolidated the next generation of experts and practitioners who share a common vision on the development of the Black Sea region.

We have extracted brief opinions from the presentations of our experts and we wish to share these with those interested in the development of the Black Sea region, or in matters of intelligence, security or international relations.

Critical times require like-minded partners.

Alexandru Victor Micula, State Secretary

for political analysis and Parliament relation (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

NATO considers the Black Sea Region a very strategic area for the security of the Alliance.

General Nicolae-Ionel CIUCĂ, the Chief of Staff of the Ministery of National Defence

NATO’s focus on Black Sea security evolved from immediate response, after Crimea, to enduring stance, by persistent ally presence.

Diego Ruiz PALMER, Special Advisor to the NATO Secretary General for Economics and Security

In order to understand digital propaganda, we should answer the following questions:

What we know of the new phenomenon?

What we’ve started to know?

What we don’t know?

What we should know?

Cornel Bjola, Associate Professor Diplomatic Studies, St. Cross College, University of Oxford

There is no East – West dichotomy. The difference is in manner, not in kind.

Cristian Norocel, Ethnic Relations and Nationalism Centre, University of Helsinki

The fourth edition of SBSR organized by the Romanian Intelligence Service, through the “Mihai Viteazul” National Intelligence Academy, in partnership with Harvard University and the National Intelligence University (US), under the high patronage of the Romanian Presidency, will take place between May, 28 – June, 2.

The program has continued and developed the philosophy, mission and objectives of the Black Sea Security regional program, initiated by Harvard University 16 years ago. SBSR is an interactive and collaborative platform, addressing participants responsible for developing a sustainable future and ensuring the security of the Black Sea Region. This edition will bring together approximately 70 participants and speakers from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Finland, Georgia, Greece, Great Britain, Germany, Serbia, United States, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine, as well as EU and NATO high-ranking officials. Representatives from most prestigious universities, such as Harvard University, Oxford University, George Washington University, University of York, University of Helsinki, will take part and contribute to the lectures and interactive exercises.

With this year’s theme, (Con)tested power continuities in the Black Sea Region, the new ecologies of power, developed around the diverging interests of the actors in the region, will be the subject of debates.

The opening ceremony will be attended by the Director of the Romanian Intelligence Service, Mr. Eduard Hellvig, the Director of the Eurasia Security Program (Harvard University), Mr. Sergei Konoplyov, the Chief of Staff of the Ministery of National Defence, general Nicolae-Ionel CIUCĂ, the state secretary for political analysis and Parliament relation (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Mr. Alexandru Victor Micula, the Deputy Director of the Romanian Intelligence Service, colonel Cristian Bizadea, and the Presidential Counselor, Mr. Ion Oprișor, as well as representatives of national and international academic institutions.