1 BILLION EURO MOBILISED FOR EU-UKRAINE SOLIDARITY LANES
The European Commission announced it is urgently dedicating EUR 250 million grants to sustain and boost the capacity of the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes. For the short-term, the Commission will support quick improvements, in particular with mobile equipment, to reduce waiting times and improve movement through the border crossing points and their access routes. For the medium-term, the Commission is mobilising the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and EUR 50 million to support the infrastructure developments needed to increase further the capacity of the Solidarity Lanes.
Working with partner Financial Institutions such as the European Investment Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the World Bank, the Commission wants to ensure liquidity for operators, and funding of repairs and capacity increases. The European Investment Bank plans to invest up to EUR 300 million by end-2023 on projects that respond to the Solidarity Lanes objectives. In addition, the EIB and the Commission are making available technical expertise for the identification and preparation of cross-border transport projects to be financed under the CEF.
Additionally, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development intends to invest EUR 300 million in favour of the Solidarity Lanes over 2022-2023. The World Bank Group is also preparing an emergency project to undertake repairs of the railway and road infrastructure damaged by the war with up to USD 100 million targeted for disbursement in 2023. Rehabilitation of railway infrastructure and multi-modal logistics in Romania and the Republic of Moldova to Ukraine's borders is under discussion to support Ukrainian critical exports and imports, and lay foundations for reconstruction.
The European Commission and bordering EU Member States established the EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes on 12 May 2022, as part of the EU's response to the Russian aggression against Ukraine. The Solidarity Lanes are essential corridors for Ukraine's agricultural exports, as well as the export and import of other goods.
Source: European Commission