Cohesion and European transport networks: what role for Italy in the Western Balkans?

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The cohesion policy of the European Union (EU) for transport has the objective of promoting more efficient, inclusive and sustainable connections and fostering commercial, social and cultural exchanges not only between the Member States of the Union but also with the in the pre-access phase, including those of the Western Balkans.
One of the main sources of funding for cohesion projects is represented by the Structural Investment Funds (European Structural and Investment Funds, ESIF) and the IPA III Programming (Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance). In particular, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) provides financial support for the development and improvement of transport infrastructures, the European Social Fund (ESF) instead aims to promote worker mobility and increase employment opportunities in the sector of transport. In addition to the Structural Funds, the European Territorial Cooperation program (Interreg) promotes collaboration between Regions through the implementation of pilot projects and experiments and the networking of stakeholders and operators in the sector. In this context, Italy has defined the priorities of the new 2021-2027 programming cycle, which include the upgrading of the high-speed railway networks, the planned maintenance of the road network and the development of port and airport infrastructures, as well as the implementation of new technologies for intelligent transport systems (ITS).
Another important financial instrument is the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) which provides funding for the construction of the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T) or for the construction of transport infrastructures along the main axes (“Core” network) and for the connections between the main axes and the local territories (“comprehensive” network). In the latest revision of the TEN-T adopted by the European Council in December 2022, particular importance is given to the Western Balkan Region, which plays a strategic role for the EU in the light of the new geopolitical framework that is emerging with the war in Ukraine. In fact, the extension of the TEN-T in the Balkans with a specific corridor called “Western Balkans-Eastern Mediterranean” was approved, which connects Greece and the Black Sea to Italy, Austria and Hungary. This corridor represents a hinge between the crucial axes of connection between the Mediterranean, the Baltic Sea-Adriatic Sea, on one side, and the Western Balkans, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea on the other; it constitutes a first step to facilitate, through the development of transport networks, integration and social cohesion as well as to shift the center of gravity of trade in the Balkan region to the West.
For Italy, the new corridor is strategic both in the development to the North including the “Trieste-Ljubljana” section, which allows the connection with the Mediterranean corridor, but above all in the development to the South for the maritime connection “Bari-Durres”, section which connects the Western Balkans to the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor (extended in the new extended TEN-T network up to Bari). This network of connections centered around the Adriatic Sea represents an important novelty in EU policy for the development of maritime connections between the ports of the Adriatic and the Ionian. On the other hand, Italy is the country that coordinates the Transport Pillar of the European Strategy of the Adriatic-Ionian Region (EUSAIR) and has identified in the harmonized and sustainable development of maritime transport and in the network of intermodal connections (freight and passengers), two specific regional priorities to be included in the Partnership Agreement for ESIF and IPA III funds: this is a push for a faster integration of the Balkan Region into the EU (especially for Albania, Montenegro and North Macedonia) which could also act as flywheel to strengthen commercial relations between the ports of Italy, Croatia and Slovenia.

* Full Professor of Transport Planning at the Politecnico di Milano and Coordinator for Italy of the EU Strategy of the Adriatic-Ionian Region (EUSAIR)

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This article takes up the contents of EU Talks, a format proposed by Il Sole 24 Ore together with the CNR ISSIRFA to discuss cohesion policy and European structural funds live on Instagram, and their role in development policies in Italy. In the sixth appointment which took place on 12 June (and which can be retrieved online on the Instagram del Sole page) the third of the objectives of the Partnership Agreement of the cohesion policy 2021-2027 was discussed: a more connected Europe. CNR ISSIRFA, together with Osservatorio Balcani-Caucaso, is a partner of Il Sole 24 Ore in the Work for Future project, funded by the European Commission