Brussels, 09/06/2011 (Agence Europe) - The European Union often has trouble acting in line with its own comments on regional and sub-regional cooperation, especially when it comes to policies set in place for the four seas of the EU neighbourhood: - the Mediterranean, the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea and the Baltic Sea. It must, however, pursue its course in its vision of a broader Europe surrounded by friends and partner countries. These were the main conclusions reached by a seminar organised in Turin by three European think-tanks, the Istituto Affari Internazionali (IAI) in Rome, the European Policy Centre (EPC) in Brussels and Paralleli in Turin. Discussion between experts and researchers on 6-7 June within the framework of the “EU4Seas” research project backed by the European Commission and led by CIDOB in Barcelona was on the theme “Is the EU a multilateral actor in its neighbourhood?” The debate highlighted the common features and the differences in EU action towards the four sea basins. Michele Comellu, senior fellow at the IAI, stated that the Mediterranean, because of its size and the heterogeneity of the countries and people at its shores, is a special case that makes sub-regional cooperation even more difficult, notwithstanding the 40-year long Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. (Gp/transl.jl)