The European Commission will redirect 135m euros to cooperation programmes with Ukraine and Moldova. These funds were previously planned for Russia and Belarus, states the European Commission website.
First, the money were allocated for Interreg NEXT programmes with Russia and Belarus for 2021-2027.
"The decision to cancel the originally envisaged cooperation with Russia and Belarus through our Interreg programmes is the result of the brutal war of Russia against Ukraine. I am glad that the funds we had initially planned for this cooperation will now benefit the EU's programmes with Ukraine and Moldova. This will help strengthen collaboration between EU regions and local stakeholders with Ukrainian and Moldovan partners," said Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Eliza Ferreira.
This funding may support a range of activities, including Solidarity Lanes and the development of cross-border transport links, health services, education and research projects, social inclusion schemes, as well as reinforcing the institutional capacity of Ukrainian and Moldovan public authorities. Involvement in Interreg programmes also brings administrative capacity benefits and experience to both countries in the management and implementation of EU funds.
The Commission has also decided that regions in Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Poland which were supposed to participate in cooperation programmes with Russia and Belarus may participate in other existing Interreg programmes.
The EU is allocating almost €250mn for the development of transport infrastructure with Ukraine and Moldova, which will facilitate Ukrainian exports.
In addition, the European Commission is creating a mechanism to support the reconstruction of Ukraine in the amount of 50bn euros. Payments will start from the beginning of 2024.