​On 29 November CoR Plenary adopted the opinion of Ms Marie-Antoinette Maupertuis President of the Regional Assembly of Corsica, on "Boosting lasting and effective cooperation with neighbouring countries."

"Bottom-up cooperation with EU neighbouring countries, at land or at sea borders, helps promote cohesion and mutual trust, essential catalysts for democracy and peace" says Ms Maupertuis while presenting her opinion in presence of the Member of the European Parliament, Mr Daniel Buda. On the eve of the  vote in the European Parliament's committee on Regional Development on the topic, local and regional leaders urge EU decision makers to increase the funding and the efficiency of cross-border programmes.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine had significant consequences on cross-border cooperation with neighbouring countries. Interreg programmes with Russia and Belarus were suspended and resources redirected towards Ukraine and Moldova, both candidate countries to join the European Union. In its opinion, adopted by unanimity the Committee of the Regions (CoR) asks to set up a mechanism to compensate EU border regions affected by the drop in access to funding due to the conflict.

The CoR also call on the European Commission to simplify the existing mechanism for territorial cooperation, such as macroregions and EGTCs (European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation), and stress the need for maritime cross-border cooperation to be better structured, given that many of the EU's neighbouring countries are located in the Mediterranean basin. For many islands, territorial cooperation in general – and cross-border cooperation in particular – is vital for maintaining ties with the EU mainland and with their neighbours.

The rapporteur Marie-Antoinette Maupertuis, President of the Regional Assembly of Corsica, said: "Europe is facing a series of simultaneous crises, ranging from the war in Ukraine provoked by Russia to the conflict in the Middle East, the migratory crisis in the Mediterranean and climate change. In this critical context, it is imperative to strengthen land and maritime cross-border cooperation to promote peace, cohesion and prosperity, by building trust and developing joint projects between the regions and local authorities of the EU and its neighbours."