On Wednesday 3 September, as part of the second legislative package on the EU’s multiannual financial framework (MFF) for 2028-2034 (see other news), the European Commission adopted a proposal to strengthen cooperation with the thirteen overseas countries and territories (OCTs), including Greenland, in a changing geopolitical context.
This proposal, which amends Decision 2021/1764 on the association of the overseas countries and territories, including Greenland, aims to simplify the current architecture by merging EU financial support for Greenland and the other OCTs.
To meet the objectives of the EU-OCT partnership in a changing world, the Commission is proposing to increase the overall budget to almost €1 billion for the period 2028-2034, i.e. double the amount allocated for 2021-2027.
The OCTs are territories with special constitutional links to certain EU Member States (mainly France, the Netherlands and Denmark), but which are not part of the European Union in the strict sense.
They do, however, enjoy association status under European law, designed to foster their economic and social development, strengthen their regional integration and support their cooperation with the EU.
Examples of OCTs: - for France: French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Wallis and Futuna, Saint Barthélemy; - for the Netherlands: Aruba, Curaçao, Saint Martin; - for Denmark: Greenland.
These territories are distinct from the outermost regions (ORs), such as Guadeloupe, Réunion, the Azores and Madeira, which are fully part of the EU and its internal market.
To see the proposal: https://aeur.eu/f/i9a (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)