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Cohesion policy in the EU’s eastern border regions: strengthening territorial resilience and cross-border cooperation

TA-10-2026-0364 · P10_TA(2026)0364 · PE789.932

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✦ In short · AI summary of this text, generated 23 Oct 2026

Written by a language model from the full text only; every figure comes from the text. The paragraph links open the paragraph a statement rests on — check the text itself before relying on it.

Parliament's resolution calls for a dedicated, long-term EU financial response for the EU's eastern border regions, primarily through cohesion policy, with genuine additional resources rather than reallocated funds. It asks for a top-up allocation under the 2028-2034 cohesion framework, a dedicated Interreg envelope compensating lost cooperation funds, and ring-fenced shares of other EU instruments. It seeks more flexibility: higher co-financing and pre-financing, simplified rules, special border region status and looser State aid rules, plus a composite vulnerability indicator for these regions. It lists investment categories to be made eligible, from healthcare and transport to energy, digital, dual-use and civil preparedness infrastructure, and calls for support for civil-preparedness plans and transport links with Ukraine and Moldova. It also addresses depopulation, asking for measures to retain and attract residents, and calls for action against disinformation and for stronger cross-border cooperation.

Key points

  1. Welcomes the Commission's communication on the EU's eastern regions as a first step, but says it should lead to legislation and be matched by a dedicated long-term financial response with genuine additional resources.
  2. Calls for a dedicated top-up allocation for eastern border regions under the 2028-2034 cohesion framework, additional to national and regional allocations and based on territorial vulnerability and strategic function criteria.
  3. Asks the Commission to make eastern border regions a horizontal priority across the next multiannual financial framework, with compulsory involvement of local authorities and a permanent European forum of eastern regions.
  4. Requests greater implementation flexibility, a revision of the General Block Exemption Regulation and regional State aid guidelines, special border region status, and aid intensity at least 10 to 15 percentage points above standard ceilings.
  5. Calls for a dedicated Interreg funding envelope at least equivalent to the funds lost by regions bordering Russia and Belarus, with partnerships with Ukraine and Moldova and a north-south cooperation dimension among eastern border regions.
  6. Asks for frontline priority status under the new Interreg objective, with higher co-financing, simplified procedures and rapid mobilisation of funds, and for faster rail interoperability investment with Ukraine and Moldova.
  7. Proposes co-financing of up to 95% for projects in eastern border regions, up to 100% for security, resilience or critical infrastructure projects, and a 30% pre-financing rate.
  8. Calls for ring-fenced allocations of up to 10% of relevant EU instruments' budgets for eastern border regions, focused on education, skills and entrepreneurship for young people.
  9. Sets the geographical scope as NUTS 2 regions with at least a 5 km land border or 30 km maritime border with Russia or Belarus, or a border with Ukraine or Moldova or access to the Black Sea, with periodic review.
  10. Lists investment categories to be eligible in these regions, including healthcare, local roads, energy, digital and dual-use infrastructure, civil preparedness, border protection, food security and local public services.
  11. Calls for EU support for regional and local civil-preparedness plans, and for priority investment in transport links, logistics and border crossings with Ukraine and Moldova.
  12. Calls for a composite vulnerability indicator for eastern border regions, developed with Eurostat and ESPON, to guide the intensity of EU support, and for measures to retain and attract residents.

Who is affected

  • EU regions on the eastern border: would receive a dedicated top-up allocation, higher co-financing and special State aid treatment.
  • Local and regional authorities in these regions: would be compulsorily involved in preparing and implementing plans and programmes.
  • Businesses and investors in these regions: would benefit from special economic zones, looser State aid rules and one-stop-shops.
  • Ukraine and Moldova: would gain reinforced Interreg cooperation and transport links.

Figures and deadlines

  • Some 3 646 km of external land border with Russia and Belarus, plus 1 370 km with Ukraine and 680 km with Moldova.
  • Population decline in eastern border regions averaged 2,6 % between 2016 and 2025, while the EU population rose by 1,2 %.
  • Over 1,3 million Ukrainian refugees registered in Poland alone by early 2026.
  • Rail freight on corridors serving the closed borders fell by 75-80 %; overnight stays by foreign tourists fell by 10-35 %.
  • Approximately EUR 34,6 billion reallocated from cohesion policy funds in the mid-term review; eastern border regions reallocated approximately EUR 5,6 billion.
  • Regions lost approximately EUR 300 million of cross-border cooperation support, with only approximately EUR 150 million reallocated, a net loss of EUR 150 million.
  • Aid intensity at least 10 to 15 percentage points above standard regional aid ceilings.
  • Co-financing up to 95 %, up to 100 % for security and critical infrastructure projects, and a 30 % pre-financing rate.

Legal basis: Articles 14, 174, 175 and 177 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.