The Assembly of European Regions (AER) is the largest independent networking organization of regions in wider Europe. Bringing together regions from 25 countries and 15 interregional organizations, AER is a forum for interregional cooperation.
Historical background On 15 June 1985, at Louvain-la-Neuve (Walloon Brabant), 47 Regions and 9 interregional organizations founded the Council of the Regions of Europe (CRE), which would later become the Assembly of European Regions in November 1987 at the second General meeting of the Regions of Europe in Brussels.
The year 1985 was proclaimed by the United Nations as the International Youth Year. The same year AER launched its first programme, Eurodyssey, designed to promote and encourage youth mobility.
In 1990, AER's Tabula Regionum Europae released the inaugural map depicting Europe not solely as a collection of countries but as regions. The following year, the principle of subsidiarity emerged as AER's flagship initiative, advocating for the involvement of regions in European and national decision-making. Its impact was swiftly recognized, culminating in its inclusion in the Maastricht Treaty of 1992.
The creation of the Committee of the Regions (CoR) in 1994 and the Chamber of the Regions in the framework of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe (CLRAE) in 1994, exemplified a victory for AER in advocating for the regions in Europe.
In 1995, AER launched a campaign to promote regionalism in Europe. As a result, 300 AER members adopted in 1996 the Declaration on Regionalism in Europe immediately initializing a reference document for new and developing regions.
In 2002, AER presented its position on the “Future of Europe” to the European Convention. AER actively contributed to the drafting of the European Constitution, demonstrating strong political involvement. The final text included all AER proposals, namely The recognition of the regions as an important level of governance within Europe. The extension of the principle of subsidiarity to regional and local levels. The inclusion of regional cohesion in EU's objectives. In 2008, AER established the Youth Regional Network, Europe's first and only platform of regional youth councils, parliaments, and organizations.
Definition of "Region" According to the AER statutes, in principle the term "region" refers to a territorial authority existing at the level immediately below that of the central government, with its own political representation in the form of an elected regional assembly.
Members Member regions of the Assembly of European Regions are as follows: Country Member regions Berat CountyDibër CountyDurrës CountyElbasan CountyFier CountyGjirokastër CountyKorçë CountyKukës CountyLezhë CountyShkodër CountyTirana CountyVlorë County Tavush ProvinceLori Province BurgenlandLower AustriaTyrolUpper AustriaVienna Brussels-Capital RegionGerman-speaking CommunityWallonia Bosnian-Podrinje Canton GoraždeBrčko DistrictSarajevo CantonZenica-Doboj Istria CountyKrapina-Zagorje CountyOsijek-Baranja CountyPrimorje-Gorski Kotar CountyŠibenik-Knin CountySplit-Dalmatia CountyVaraždin CountyZagreb County Union of Cyprus Municipalities CorsicaGrand EstGuadeloupeMartinique AdjaraImereti County DonegalCounty MayoÚdarás na Gaeltachta AbruzzoMoliseSardiniaTrentino-Alto AdigeUmbriaValle d’Aosta Budva FlevolandGelderland InnlandetNordlandØstfold AzoresMadeira Alba CountyArad CountyArgeș CountyBihor CountyBistrița-Năsăud CountyBrașov CountyBuzău CountyCaraș-Severin CountyCălărași CountyCluj CountyCovasna CountyDâmbovița CountyDolj CountyGalați CountyGorj CountyHarghita CountyIași CountyIlfov CountyMaramureș CountyMehedinți CountyMureș CountyNeamț CountyOlt CountyPrahova CountySatu Mare CountySibiu CountyTimiș CountyTulcea CountyVaslui CountyVrancea County Sumadija i PomoravljeVojvodina Košice Region Eastern SloveniaWestern Slovenia CatalunyaMurciaValencian Community GävleborgJönköpingNorrbottenÖrebroVärmlandVästerbottenVästra Götaland Basel-StadtFribourg CantonZürich Canton Adana ProvinceAntalya ProvinceDenizli ProvinceEdirne ProvinceErzurum ProvinceGaziantep Provinceİzmir ProvinceMuş ProvinceSakarya Province Association of Self-Governments Euroregion Carpathians-UkraineChernivtsi OblastDnipropetrovsk OblastKharkiv OblastKirovohrad OblastKryvyi RihLviv OblastOdesa OblastOdesa RaionPavlohradPoltava OblastRivne OblastTernopil OblastTranscarpathia OblastZaporizhzhia Oblast
As a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, AER suspended Russian members.
List of presidents of the AER Albert Castellanos - Catalonia (Spain) - 2023–present Magnus Berntsson - Västra Götaland (Sweden) - 2017–2023 Hande Özsan Bozatlı - Istanbul (Turkey) - 2013–2017 Michèle Sabban - Île-de-France (France) - 2008–2013 Riccardo Illy - Friuli-Venezia-Giulia (Italy) - 2004–2008 Liese Prokop - Lower Austria (Austria) - 2000–2004 Luc Van den Brande - Flanders (Belgium) - 1996–2000 Jordi Pujol - Catalonia (Spain) - 1992-1996 Carlo Bernini - Veneto (Italy) - 1988–1992 Edgar Faure - Franche-Comté (France) - 1985–1988
See also European integration Politics of Europe Regions of Europe
References