The Three Seas Countries, as well as Poland, Ukraine and Moldova, are applying for a revision of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), proposing to build 5 bridges across the Danube on the border with Romania to improve communication between the North and south of Europe.
As part of the expansion of the TEN-T network, Eastern European countries are seeking to create road and rail links between the North and South at the expense of EU funds.
“We depended on east – west connections. Today it turned out that there were not enough of them. We must be as active as possible and strive to shape the TEN-T network in such a way that it meets new challenges,” said Yulia Skachkauskas, Deputy Minister of transport and communications of Lithuania.
According to Bulgarian transport minister Nikolai Sabev, redefining the TEN-T corridors is a necessity in the current situation.
“We are still at a low level in terms of North – South ties. This became especially noticeable after the outbreak of the war. We have to build 5 new bridges across the Danube on the border with Romania. We are taking steps in this direction. This is necessary so that we can talk about improving communication between the North and south of Europe,” he said.
Deputy Minister of transport and infrastructure of Romania Adrian Fogis noted the economic benefits of expanding the roadmap. In his opinion, Moldova plays an important role in building coordinated ties in this part of Europe. Moldovan Transport Minister Andriy Spina said that the transit of goods from the territory of Ukraine to the EU countries is impossible without the participation of his country and called for expanding cooperation.
Participants discussed the addition of the previously completed Via Carpatia road route with the rail Carpatia corridor.