Water Diplomacy in Action: EESC event on REX/597 opinion on Blue Diplomacy and Water Cooperation and SIWI Handbook

At its 599th plenary session, held on 18 September 2025, the European Economic and Social Committee adopted an opinion on  Blue Diplomacy and water cooperation – solutions to relieve the pressure of climate induced migration.

In this opinion, the EESC recommends adopting one definition at EU level for climate-induced migration. Furthermore, it recommends encouraging and funding further research of projects, recognising the complexity and multi-faceted aspect of migration, and to investigate the possibility of amending data collection protocols for people entering countries of destination.

The EESC also calls for efforts to encourage dialogue between legal and migration professionals to share different interpretations of the legal framework within and across Member States. It calls on the European Commission to develop a compendium of relevant case law and highlights the need to encourage the use of the Practical Toolkit on International Protection for people displaced across borders in the context of climate change and disasters. Additionally, it calls for efforts to encourage the creation of synergies between the EU’s environmental and migration policy by integrating the Humanitarian Development-Peace nexus further into climate mobility policy and embedding migration as adaptation in its approach to climate mobility.

The EESC also calls on the European Commission to further shape its cooperation with partner countries, to facilitate access to international funds to support partner countries in climate resilience and preparedness, and to pursue the commitments made.

Finally, the EESC recommends that the scope of the Temporary Protection Directive be extended to migrants fleeing from countries heavily affected by disasters and climate change.

Building up on this important opinion, the European Economic and Social Committee’s REX Section hosted a high-impact follow-up event on Blue Diplomacy and Water Cooperation on 5 November in Brussels. Organised in partnership with the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI), the International Centre for Water Cooperation (ICWC), and United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the meeting gathered an impressive array of policymakers, scientists, diplomats, and practitioners to advance water as a cornerstone of peace, security, and sustainability.

The event had two important objectives: firstly, to build upon the EESC’s REX/597 opinion on Blue Diplomacy and Water Cooperation— adopted at the September plenary — as well as to present the newly published Routledge Water Diplomacy Handbook elaborated  by SIWI. This get-together was conceived in the wake of World Water Week in Stockholm held in August, where the EESC sent a five-member delegation.

Opening Remarks: A Unified Call to Action

The session opened with interventions from key institutional voices:

• Kristian Vigenin of the European Parliament: Water is the first victim of climate change, which is why today’s and future policies must link climate, environment, diplomacy, and human rights through cooperation.
• Pernille Weiss-Ehler of the European Commission: Acting here and now costs less than inaction. Water resilience must rank alongside climate as priority for the European Union, powered by digital tools and business innovation.
• Christophe Yvetot of UNIDO: Clean industry, innovation, and partnerships are vital to cut pollution, curb water-driven migration, create jobs, and support the most vulnerable within the world’s population.
• Milena Angelova of the EESC: Legally binding frameworks are long overdue — water resilience demands decarbonization-level ambition, societal integration, and robust funding.
• Alain Coheur of the EESC: Water must be treated as a critical common good and a top EU agenda item, integrated across all sectors to ensure competitiveness, sustainability, and social justice.

Expert and Practitioner Roundtables: From Theory to Practice

Two focused roundtables followed the initial discussion, bridging analysis and implementation.

Roundtable 1 – Experts

• Tony Agotha, EU Special Envoy for Climate and Environment: Water is a strategic asset inextricably tied to security, migration, and rights — external policies must integrate these elements.
• Marc Zeitoun of the Geneva Water Hub: Water can unite or divide, which is why fair sharing of this resource underpins peace efforts and effective diplomacy.
• Saule Ospanova of the OSCE: Cross-border cooperation and inclusive governance — especially when it comes to women’s leadership — are essential for ensuring stability and fostering conflict prevention.

Roundtable 2 – Practitioners

• Lifeng Li of the Food and Agriculture Organization: It is imperative to treat water as a strategic resource for food security, therefore acting at farm, national, and global levels.
• Alejandro Rivera Rojas of UNIDO: Water diplomacy turns policy into a clear-cut impact, ensuring cleaner industry, empowered communities, and lasting stability.
• Edouard Boinet of the International Network of Basin Organisations: Success hinges on data sharing, user engagement, and resilient infrastructure.
• Richard Elelman of the Cassandra Conference and Project: Climate action must be practical, socially sensitive, and built on continuous dialogue.

Following these remarks, discussions zoomed in particularly on exercising the EESC opinion’s recommendations and the handbook’s tools in real-world settings.

The Water Diplomacy Handbook: A Toolbox for Cooperation

Co-edited by Martina Klimes and Aaron Salzberg, the handbook assembles insights from over 80 experts — more than half of them women — across foreign policy, energy, trade, and conflict resolution. The authors note that this handbook is not a merely linear read, but rather a practical toolkit geared for real-world applications –– most importantly, provided for free to all those interested.

The authors classified water conflicts in three distinct tiers:

• Simple: solvable with best practices and funding
• Complicated: needing trade-offs and political will
• Complex: where climate, finance, and power intersect unpredictably

Most crises in today’s world are multi-faceted, falling more often than not under the third category. In this context, traditional aid admittedly falls short — necessitating adaptive, multi-level, and human-centered diplomacy.

Europe’s Model and Its Next Challenge

It was noted that Europe has reason for measured pride: 7 of the top 10 countries scoring highest on UN SDG target 6.5 (transboundary water cooperation) are European. The EU Water Framework Directive, early basin-level management in Spain, the Netherlands, and France, and strong legal and institutional frameworks together result in a globally respected foundation.

However, gaps remain — especially regarding climate adaptation and quantitative resource management. In this context, the emerging EU Water Resilience Strategy begins to close them. Most of our speakers noted that the task now is clear: to export not just the European model, but the mindset — putting concrete partnership over simple preaching.

Looking Ahead

The EU is stepping up to the challenges posed by today’s crises. The inaugural Water Resilience Forum will take place on 8 December 2025, co-hosted by the European Commission, Committee of the Regions, and the EESC. By 2027, the Water Resilience Strategy faces its first major review — with hard benchmarks, not simply aspirations.

Notably, around 80 participants joined our event in person, via Interactio, or webstream, underscoring the growing interest in the topics of water management and diplomacy. The EESC welcomes such immersion in this subject, while looking forward to development of new horizons within water cooperation –– as pointed out by one of the speakers: “Ultimately, water is not only a resource to be managed — it is a connector between economies, and societies.”

The opinion is adopted. The handbook is out. However, the work has only just begun.

Now, the only question left is: will we act in time?