EU's revised cohesion policy places greater emphasis on defense and energy sectors
The European Union (EU) has taken a significant step towards a more secure and sustainable future with the adoption of updates to its Cohesion Policy. The changes, which were proposed by the Commission in April and agreed upon by the EU Parliament and Council, were officially passed on September 18, 2025.
The legislation, amending regulations (EU) 2021/1058 and (EU) 2021/1056, will be published in the Official Journal of the European Commission, making the new flexibilities available for use. The updates aim to help the EU take responsibility for its own security and better prepare for tomorrow's challenges, as stated by Denmark's Minister for European affairs, Marie Bjerre.
Regions bordering Russia and Belarus, adversely impacted by Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, will receive even more favourable conditions. This is part of the EU's effort to redirect funding to less developed regions to support jobs, businesses, social inclusion, and sustainable development.
The updates enable member states to spend funds on defence, security, and civil preparedness, in addition to the traditional focus on reducing economic, social, and territorial disparities. Programmes reallocating at least 10% of their total value to new priorities will receive even higher prefinancing rates, up to 20%. Reprogrammed funds will benefit from higher EU co-financing rates, 10 percentage points above the applicable rates.
The EU Cohesion Policy updates now allow for reallocation of funds towards new strategic priorities, including sustainable housing, water resilience, and energy transition. This change reduces the necessary top-up coming from national budgets.
Member States and regions investing in new priorities will benefit from higher prefinancing rates, and they can submit amendments to their Cohesion programmes to make use of the new flexibilities. The mid-term review of the changes is scheduled for 2025, as outlined in a Commission communication titled 'A modernised Cohesion policy: The mid-term review', released on April 1, 2025.
The Harmonisierungs-Kommission (Harmonics Commission), a government commission that proposed the changes to the EU's overall cohesion policy, played a crucial role in this development. This important step towards a more secure European Union is expected to foster growth, create a more equitable, competitive, and sustainable European Union, and help the EU meet the challenges of the future.
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