Enlargement and Black Sea now 'core' to EU strategy

Members of of the European Committee of the Regions on 28 January reiterated the urgent need for European local and regional authorities to donate energy equipment to Ukrainian cities as the country faces a combination of crippling Russian attacks on energy infrastructure and one of the coldest winters in decades.

The calls, led by Magali Altounian (FR/Renew Europe) at a meeting of the Commission for Citizenship, Governance, Institutional and External Affairs (CIVEX), follow a request from the Association of Ukrainian Cities and a letter from the president of the CoR and the CoR's working group on Ukraine to members of the CoR and to members of the European Alliance of Cities and Regions for the Reconstruction of Ukraine. Full details of how to help can be found on the CoR's website.

The meeting included a special presentation appealing for longer-term support for mental-health initiatives for Ukraine, with testimony from a Spanish expert. The presentation was introduced by Adrián Zittelli Ferrari (ES/NI), director-general for European Union affairs for the Region of Murcia, who argued that "mental health must be treated as a central pillar of reconstruction" and pressed for "scalable European action on mental health".

The calls to action were part of a meeting that was principally devoted to discussion and adoption of opinions on enlargement and the Black Sea in which CIVEX members and representatives of the European Commission and the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the European Union emphasised the need for populations in countries seeking EU membership to experience the practical benefits of integration well before accession.

A recording of the meeting is available on the CoR's website, together with details and documentation about the meeting.

Enlargement

During a debate on enlargement, the Cypriot Presidency and the European Commission emphasised the need for further "strategic communication" about enlargement, a policy that, according to a 2025 Eurobarometer poll, enjoys the support of a majority of EU citizens.

The Cypriot presidency said that enlargement is "not simply a policy choice, but a strategic imperative", adding that "if enlargement is strategic, our communication must also be strategic, citizen-focused, fact-based, and carried by all levels of governance", including local and regional authorities.

The European Commission presented a Eurobarometer poll that found that 56% of EU citizens support enlargement. Information is a critical factor, with 74% support for enlargement among citizens who feel informed compared with 49% of those who feel uninformed.

Better information, tailored outreach and honest dialogue were described by contributors as essential to increase and sustain backing for a larger and stronger Union. Germany, France and Italy are among the eight member states where the poll found that support is below the 56% average.

The debate was followed by the adoption of two opinions on the European Commission's annual enlargement reports, which detail progress on reform made by countries seeking EU membership and identify where further improvements are needed.

Patrick Molinoz (FR/PES), vice-president of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region and the CoR's rapporteur on Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia, said: "The issue of enlargement has taken on a new dimension in 2026: the EU's strategic, economic and political security is threatened not only by Russia's growing hostility, but also - and this is new - by the end of long-held certainties regarding our historic American ally. In this context, it is essential to strengthen citizens' support for enlargement by more closely involving cities and regions in its challenges and opportunities."

Gillian Coughlan (IE/RE), member of Cork County Council and the CoR's rapporteur for the Western Balkans and Türkiye, said: "EU enlargement is no longer a distant policy debate but a security, democracy and resilience project. Its success will be decided locally, where European values are lived and defended. In an era of war, disinformation and external interference, strong municipalities in the Western Balkans and Türkiye are a strategic asset for the EU itself."

The European Commission representative said that "provided that the momentum and the pace of reforms continue", there is a "realistic possibility" that the four frontrunners could complete negotiations by their own target dates - 2026 in the case of Montenegro, 2027 for Albania, and 2028 in the cases of Ukraine and Moldova.

Both opinions will now be sent for adoption at the CoR's plenary on 4-5 March.

The EU's Strategic Approach to the Black Sea

In a debate on the EU's strategic approach to the Black Sea, both the CoR's rapporteur - Blagomir Kotsev (BG/RE), mayor of Varna - and MEP Sergey Lagodinsky (DE/Greens-EFA), co-president of the EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly, described the Black Sea an essential complement to the EU's enlargement policy as well as to the Eastern Partnership and the EU's Global Gateway initiative.

In comments echoed by CIVEX members, both said that the Black Sea is no longer on Europe's periphery, but, rather, is on its strategic frontline - "even its geopolitical core", said MEP Lagodinsky.

"This debate is not about a technical file," MEP Lagodinsky said. "It is a test of whether the European Union is finally ready to think geopolitically", he said, arguing for the EU to "think geopolitically, act locally, and coordinate Europe-wide."

The CoR's opinion identifies four pillars for a strategic agenda from a regional and local dimension: defence, energy security, economic growth, and climate action. Rapporteur Kotsev, whose city is the largest EU port on the Black Sea, particularly emphasised the need for improved infrastructure links along a north-south axis from the Baltic and Aegean, including the Black Sea ports of Varna and Burgas in Bulgaria and Constanța in Romania.

Mr Kotsev said: "Today's challenging times accelerate the need for a joint European approach to the Black Sea region. Events in Europe, America and the Middle East demand of us to take real responsibility. Not just on paper, but through action. Ambitious, aspiring, actionable. That is how I would like to be able to describe our work to the people of Varna when I get back home."

The opinion is scheduled for adoption at the CoR's plenary on 4-5 March.

Union Support for Asylum, Migration and Integration Management, 2028-2034

The CoR's rapporteur on the planned financial and governance framework for asylum, migration and integration under in the next the EU's next long-term budget welcomed a proposed budget for migration and asylum management. However, in an initial debate with CoR members, rapporteur Arnoldas Abramavičius (LT/EPP), member of Zarasai District Municipality Council warned that the European Commission's intention to establish one plan per member state risks relegating local and regional authorities to mere consultees and undermining the predictability of their funding.

Mr Abramavičius said that his draft opinion will emphasise the necessity for local and regional authorities to have structured and legally guaranteed roles, the importance of predictable multi-year funding, and the need for any increase in conditions on EU funding to be matched with targeted capacity-building.

Mr Abramavičius said: "'Managing migration is a European challenge which can't be addressed without the engagement of regions and municipalities. As rapporteur, I will work to ensure that EU resources in the future MFF will support the capacities of LRAs to contribute to a comprehensive and orderly management of migration, integration and returns.''