Source: European Parliament
The Commission is monitoring the impact of the Red Sea situation on maritime traffic[1], and is aware of the changes in traffic patterns from deep sea routes and larger container vessels in East Mediterranean and in some Central Mediterranean ports, which may impact ports in different ways.
1. As announced in the Competitiveness Compass ( COM/2025/30 final) the Commission will present an EU Ports Strategy, addressing competitiveness of EU ports.
The Commission supports employment and protects workers through various instruments, such as the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+)[2]. Under the relevant ESF+ national and regional programmes, workers may receive support for upskilling and reskilling as well as for reintegration into the labour market. More information is available via the programmes’ Managing Authorities[3].
2. The ports referred to by the Honourable Members are part of the trans-European transport (TEN-T) core network. While EU funds are not designed to directly compensate for economic losses, several instruments can help mitigate long-term impacts of disruptions. The Connecting Europe Facility[4] can support infrastructure projects that strengthen port accessibility, intermodality and digitalisation. The Just Transition Mechanism[5], Recovery and Resilience Facility[6], and European Regional Development Fund[7] can support projects related to infrastructure, sustainability, and workforce training. The Cohesion Fund[8], particularly relevant for Slovenia’s port of Koper, and used to improve rail transport connections for the port of Rijeka in Croatia, can assist with infrastructure improvements and regional development projects.
- [1] See in particular the report from the Commission Monitoring of the implementation of Directive 2003/87/EC in relation to maritime transport COM(2025)110 final.
- [2] See https://ec.europa.eu/esf/main.jsp?catId=62&langId=en
- [3] For Italy: ESF+ Programme Veneto Region; ESF+ Programme Emilia-Romagna region; ESF+ Programme Friuli Venezia Giulia and ESF+ National Programme Youth, Women and jobs.
- [4] https://transport.ec.europa.eu/transport-themes/infrastructure-and-investment/connecting-europe-facility_en
- [5] https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/priorities-2019-2024/european-green-deal/finance-and-green-deal/just-transition-mechanism_en
- [6] https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/economic-recovery/recovery-and-resilience-facility_en
- [7] https://commission.europa.eu/funding-tenders/find-funding/eu-funding-programmes/european-regional-development-fund-erdf_en
- [8] https://commission.europa.eu/funding-tenders/find-funding/eu-funding-programmes/cohesion-fund-cf_en#:~:text=Fund%20features-,About%20the%20Fund,dedicated%20national%20or%20regional%20programmes