The transport ministers of the EU Member States will meet in Brussels on Monday 5 December. This meeting should be an opportunity for them to adopt their general approach to the revision of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) Regulation (see EUROPE 13048/17).
“This proposal is an important building block for transport connectivity. This was one of the priorities of the Czech Presidency of the EU Council. The discussions were not easy. It was sometimes difficult to reach a common position among the Member States, as the situations are very different within the EU”, said a European diplomatic source, adding that he was confident that unanimity would be reached on this issue.
As a reminder, the proposal aims to review and further build the TEN-T to make it reliable and seamless, avoiding physical interruptions, bottlenecks and other missing links by 2050.
This point will lead the competent ministers to discuss the situation in Ukraine and the issue of solidarity lanes, while the European Commission approved on Tuesday 15 November a joint declaration aimed at involving Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia more closely in the work of the various bodies of the Transport Community (see EUROPE 13063/19).
“These are highly political issues, which is why this is a complex subject”, said a European diplomatic source.
The transport ministers are also expected to adopt conclusions on the ongoing development of inland waterway transport (‘NAIADES III’), which aims to strengthen the role of inland waterway transport in the EU and increase its use for short distances. The ‘NAIADES III’ programme is also intended to achieve a transition to zero-emission barges by 2050.
In addition, the various transport components of the ‘Fit for 55’ package will be discussed. In particular, the Czech Presidency of the EU Council is expected to take stock of the ongoing discussions on the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR) (see EUROPE 13046/12) as well as the ‘ReFuelEU Aviation’ (see EUROPE 13052/19) and ‘FuelEU Maritime’ (see EUROPE 13046/13) regulations.
Further discussions will be held on the ‘Single European Sky’, the revision of the directive on intelligent transport systems or the stability requirements applicable to ro-ro passenger ships.
Finally, the meeting will be an opportunity for the future Swedish Presidency of the EU Council to present its work programme for the first half of 2023 to the Member States. (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)