EU redirects €135m to Ukraine and Moldova from Russia and Belarus funds
The European Union is redirecting €135 million to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova from funds that were suspended for Russia and Belarus, MEP Siegfried Mureșan has said.
The money will be used to finance projects such as developing cross-border transport links, improving health services, education and research projects, social inclusion schemes, and the "corridors of solidarity" that help Ukraine transport its grain to countries in need.
Mureșan, who is the EU's chief negotiator for the 2024 budget, said that the support for Ukraine and Moldova was "essential to ensure stability on the borders of the European Union".
He added: "We need to increase financial and technical assistance to the two countries in the coming period because this will also protect us within the Union."
The €135 million comes from the European Union's Neighbourhood Instrument for the period 2021-2027. The funds were originally allocated before the war started to finance interregional cooperation programmes between the EU and Russia and Belarus.
