EU cohesion funding to support people fleeing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
The European Commission has adopted a proposal for Cohesion’s Action for Refugees in Europe (CARE) allowing EU countries and regions to provide emergency support to people fleeing from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Commission said in a statement.
CARE is introducing the necessary flexibility in the 2014-2020 Cohesion policy rules to allow a swift reallocation of available funding to such emergency support, the statement said.
A separate statement said that in the light of the worsening humanitarian situation in Ukraine and the hundreds of thousands of people fleeing to the neighbouring countries for safety following the Russian invasion, the European Commission has set up a dedicated European system for swift transfers of persons in need of medical care among EU countries.
“As the situation unfolds and the number of persons fleeing the war continues to increase, it is crucial to ensure that that refugees and displaced persons receive the healthcare that they need, and that member states health systems, in particular those in countries bordering Ukraine, are not overwhelmed,” the statement said.
A notice about the European Council scheduled for March 10 said that EU leaders would hold an informal meeting in Versailles to discuss Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine and its consequences, as well as discuss how to strengthen European sovereignty, reduce dependencies and design a new growth and investment model.
EU leaders will focus on three key issues – bolstering the EU’s defence capabilities, reducing the bloc’s energy dependency, in particular on Russian gas, oil and coal, and building a more robust economic base.
Meanwhile, European moves to isolate Putin’s Russia continue.
Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and the European Union announced that they are suspending activities involving Russia in the Barents Euro-Arctic cooperation.
A separate joint statement by the EU, Iceland and Norway said that they had suspended until further notice all activities of the Northern Dimension policy which involve Russia and Belarus.
(Photo: UNHCR/Chris Melzer)
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