COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS An action plan for EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes to facilitate Ukraine's agricultural export and bilateral trade with the EU
Date: 2022-05-12
Institutions: Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, European Commission
Subjects: EU action, Ukraine, action programme, agricultural product, agricultural trade, bilateral relations, export aid, logistics, supply chain, trade promotion

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 12.5.2022  COM(2022) 217 final  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE COUNCIL, THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE AND THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS An action plan for EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes to facilitate Ukraine's agricultural export and bilateral trade with the EU  
 
 
1. 

Introduction  

The  Ukrainian  economy  is  severely  impacted  by  Russia’s  war  of  aggression.  Exports  in 
particular have been drastically constrained due to the blockade of Ukrainian Black Sea ports 
by the Russian navy as these ports accounted for 90% of export of grain and oilseeds before 
the war.  

Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion is already having major impacts on global food 
markets and will further undermine global food security. Without swift action, global grains 
supplies will be affected also next year. Under normal circumstances, 75% of Ukraine's grain 
production was exported, generating around 20% of national annual export revenues1. Around 
a third of the exports is destined for Europe, China and Africa, respectively.  

The EU is committed to supporting Ukraine’s economy and economic recovery, as well 
as to contributing to stabilising world food markets and improving global food security. 
It  is  thus  a  common  challenge  to  enable  Ukraine  to  export  the  goods  it  wishes,  continue 
supporting local production and ensure that connectivity with Europe is greatly enhanced for 
both exports and imports. With this objective in mind, the Commission recently proposed to 
temporarily eliminate all outstanding customs duties on imports from Ukraine under the EU-
Ukraine  Association  Agreement,  as  well  as  to  suspend  all  trade  defence  measures  on 
Ukrainian steel2. 

With regard to global food security in particular, it is urgent and important to enable Ukraine 
to  export  the  agricultural  products  currently  stored  in  the  country  onto  world  markets.  We 
need to help Ukraine ensure that the forthcoming harvests can be safely stored and  that new 
crops can be sown.  

In order for the agricultural goods to reach the EU and world markets, and also to ensure that 
Ukraine  could  import  goods  of  first  necessity  (such  as  humanitarian  aid,  food,  animal  feed, 
fertilizers,  fuel),  there  is  an  urgent  need  for  the  establishment  of  alternative  logistics 
routes  using  all  transport  modes,  linking  the  EU  to  Ukraine,  while  Ukraine’s  access  to 
Black Sea routes is  restored. This  requires the upscaling and development  of corresponding 
freight services along these logistic routes linking Ukraine to seaports in the EU, where goods 
could  be  shipped  farther  or  potentially  also  be  stored.  This  is  key  not  only  for  farmers  in 
Ukraine, but also for consumers in the EU and beyond. 

This  Communication  has  identified  key  bottlenecks  as  reported  by  the  EU  Member  States, 
Ukrainian authorities, EU and Ukrainian stakeholders. As part of the EU's solidarity response 
with  Ukraine,  the  European  Commission  is  now  putting  forward  an  action  plan  with  short, 
medium and longer-term measures to address these. The Commission will work with Member 
States,  the  Ukrainian  authorities,  transport  operators,  equipment  suppliers  and  all  other 
relevant stakeholders on both sides to establish alternative and optimised logistic routes: the 
new ‘EU-Ukraine Solidarity Lanes’. These lanes will facilitate in particular the forwarding 
of  agricultural  produce  from  Ukraine,  but  also  our  bilateral  trade  in  goods  and  access  of 
Ukraine to international markets and global supply chains making sure much needed cereals 
reach the world market.  

1   Ukraine  is  the  world's  largest  exporter  of  sunflower  oil  (50%  of  world  exports),  the  third  largest  one  of 
rapeseed (20%) and barley (18%), the fourth largest one of maize (16%) and the fifth largest one of wheat 
(12%).  

2   COM(2022) 195 final 

1 

 
 
 
                                                           
2.  Bottlenecks  

At present, thousands of wagons are waiting for clearance at the Ukrainian side of the border 
of  neighbouring  Member  States.  More  grain  is  still  stored  in  silos  ready  for  export.  The 
average current waiting time of the wagons is 16 days with up to 30 days at some EU-Ukraine 
border crossing points. Waiting times for lorries at relevant borders are also too long. Due to 
these logistical obstacles the Ukrainian authorities had to impose export restrictions in certain 
directions.  

The Commission, in close cooperation with EU Member States, public authorities of Ukraine 
and  industry  representatives  in  the  areas  of  transport  and  agriculture,  has  identified  several 
bottlenecks  that  may  hinder  the  much  needed  re-routing  of  Ukrainian  exports  and  imports, 
namely: 

-  Ukraine  uses  a  rail  gauge  of  1520  mm  width3  (broad  gauge)  while  the  EU  standard 
gauge (UIC gauge) is 1435mm wide. This means that Ukrainian wagons cannot be used 
in  most  of  the  EU  Member  States  and  that  goods  have  to  be  transhipped  from  wagons 
running  on  the  wide  gauge  to  ones  on  the  EU  standard  gauge.  Such  transhipment  has  to 
take place at logistics sites near to the border crossing points4 on both sides of the border, 
either by  changing the bogies of the  wagons or  by loading  goods from  wagons on broad 
gauge to wagons on EU standard gauge. 

-  The  current  transhipment  capacity  is  by  far  insufficient  and  not  adapted  to  operate 
substantial  volumes  of  cargo.  In  addition,  transhipment  is  time  consuming  and  requires 
special  machinery,  which  may  not  be  present  at  large  enough  numbers  at  transhipment 
points  or  the  capacity  of  such  machines  does  not  measure  up  to  the  sudden  increase  of 
demand.  

-  While  the  Ukrainian  seaports  are  under  Russian  blockade,  the  Ukrainian  inland 
waterway ports on the Danube can also be reached by certain sea-going vessels. However, 
currently  they  can  only  cover  a  rather  small  share  of  the  total  export  needs,  and  their 
operation is exposed to increased risks of sailing in the northern areas of the Black Sea; rail 
and road access from Odesa are also vulnerable.  

-  Connectivity  using  lorries  is  difficult  due  to  the  lack  of  available  vehicles,  certain 
restrictions  in  the  framework  governing  transport  rights,  other  rules  hampering  cross-
border movement of vehicles, administrative issues for documents issuance and validity as 
well as the shortage of lorry drivers both in Ukraine and EU. Waiting times for lorries at 
borders often exceed 12 hours. 

-  Feedback from stakeholders suggests that there are still unnecessary5 and costly delays to 
shipments  due  to  border  checks  (phytosanitary  and  veterinary  controls  and  customs 
clearance). 

3.  An action plan for EU-UA Solidarity Lanes 

While the European Commission cannot substitute the commercial arrangements between EU 
operators  and  the  Ukrainian  grain  sellers,  it  can  help  to  facilitate  coordination  between 

3   The same wide gauge is used in the Baltic States and Moldova and 1524 mm gauge in Finland. 
4   With the exception of the LHS line linking the border crossing point of Hrubieszów with Sławków (close to 

Katowice) in Poland. 

5   EU  legislation  does  not  require  any  veterinary  or  phytosanitary  certification  either  for  grain  imports  or  for 

transit through the EU. 

2 

 
 
 
                                                           
stakeholders  as  well  as  relevant  authorities.  Short-term  measures  must  unlock  the  existing 
logistics potential, while additional medium- and long-term actions should serve as enablers 
of Ukraine’s post-war trade and support the reconstruction of the country. 

The temporary naval blockade in the north of the Black Sea as well as the grounding of civil 
aviation  in  Ukraine  require  that  new  supply  routes  for  Ukrainian  exports  and  imports  will 
have  to  be  organized  mainly  via  land  transport  and  inland  waterway  operations.  Member 
States which find themselves in the proximity of Ukraine are allocating significant resources 
and efforts to enable smooth exports from Ukraine to the EU and beyond. The Commission 
recognizes the efforts borne by these frontline EU Member States, and intends to continue its 
support for the relevant actions they take. 

The priority now is to mobilise and make the best possible use of the existing infrastructure 
and equipment, upscale capacities to the extent possible and increase as well as diversify the 
number of routes that could be used for continuity of trade. Investments in new infrastructure 
and  equipment  as  well  as  upgrading  existing  ones  are  also  necessary,  however  they  often 
require medium and long-term horizons.  

Short term measures  

3.1 

Additional freight rolling stock, vessels and lorries  

A large number of wagons on EU standard gauge is required to meet the continuous demand 
in  the  logistics  chain  towards  relevant  export  markets.  This  could  be  partially  addressed  by 
ensuring the most effective use of the rolling stock (e.g. by minimizing the travel time as well 
as  the  loading/unloading  time  at  transhipment  centres  and  in  ports),  but  evidently,  the 
insufficient supply of wagons on EU standard gauge remains a significant bottleneck. 

Grain-hopper  and  intermodal  wagons  as  well  as  containers  and  tank  containers  (for 
liquids, e.g. sunflower oil) are urgently needed. Concerning transport on the Danube, more 
barges and coasters are needed. As intermodal wagons are available to a larger extent in the 
EU, (mobile) craning of containers at border crossings can be scaled up relatively fast. It is, 
therefore  important  to  urgently  assess  the  option  of  an  increased  use  of  containers  for  the 
transport of cereals and their availability both in Ukraine and the EU. 

In order to match the demand and supply of rolling stock, barges/coasters, and other relevant 
vehicles  and  equipment,  the  Commission  will  put  in  place  a  matchmaking  platform.  On 
the  side  of  Ukraine,  the  Ministries,  customs  authorities  and  Ukraine's  newly  created 
Coordination  Council  for  Logistics  in  Agriculture  as  well  as  the  Ukrainian  stakeholders  are 
best placed to forecast demand for transport services. In the EU, in addition to participation by 
the relevant industry stakeholders (e.g. transport companies, transhipment operators, the Rail 
Freight  Corridors,  ports),  each  Member  State  will  be  asked  to  designate  a  dedicated 
Solidarity  Lanes  contact  point  (one-stop-shop)  charged  with  liaising  with  its  domestic 
logistic  chain  actors  and  ensuring  the  quick  resolution  of  all  logistical  problems  related  to 
issues  under  the  control  of  their  respective  authorities.  The  Commission  will  lead  the 
establishment  of  the  platform  and  play  the  role  of  facilitator  between  the  various  actors  to 
significantly improve the organization of the transport operations. The EU Advisory Mission 
Ukraine (EUAM Ukraine) will continue to advise Ukrainian Authorities. 

Actions: 

3 

 
 
 
 
(1)  The  Commission  calls  on  EU  market  players  to  urgently  make  available  necessary 
equipment,  rolling  stock,  vehicles,  barges  and  vessels.  Relevant  industry  associations6 
should urgently mobilise their members in this regard. 

(2)  The  Commission  will  work  closely  with  Member  States,  Ukrainian  authorities  and 
industry  stakeholders  to  set  up  a  matchmaking  platform  to  facilitate  exchanges  between 
logistic chain actors to optimise cargo flow. 

(3)  The  Commission  calls  on  each  Member  State  to  identify  a  dedicated  Solidarity  Lanes 
contact point which would allow stakeholders to notify problems along the logistical chain. 

3.2 

Capacity of transport networks and transhipment terminals 

Freight  lines are in  many  cases congested in  several  Member States, therefore planning  and 
effective  use  of  rail  infrastructure  is  of  high  importance  when  additional  large  volumes  of 
freight need to be handled. While Ukrainian traders currently concentrate most of their efforts 
on  shipments  through  Romania  and  Poland,  the  use  of  alternative  freight  lines, 
transhipment and container capacities as well as sea port capabilities should be actively 
explored in other Member States7 where there may be spare capacity such as for example the 
Baltic States or Bulgaria. 

Given the urgency, it is also justified that Ukrainian export related freight trains be given 
priority on the European transport network on a temporary basis. To make this happen, 
it is  necessary to  ensure sufficient  availability of rail slots from  transhipment centres to  EU 
ports. 

The current transhipment capacity (including through the change of wheels or bogies of rail 
wagons)  is  by  far  insufficient  and  not  adapted  to  operate  substantial  volumes  of  cargo. 
Transhipment  is  a  time-consuming  activity  and  it  requires  special  machinery,  which  is  not 
available  in  sufficient  numbers  at  transhipment  points.  Mobile  grain  loaders8  can 
significantly speed up transhipment, however production of such equipment is scarce in the 
EU.  Therefore,  the  possibility  to  transfer  available  existing  equipment  to  the  EU-Ukraine 
border terminals – e.g. through temporary rental contracts – should be explored. 

Loading  of  EU  standard-gauge  wagons  can  take  place  at  both  sides  of  the  border  as  the 
different gauges enter in some points (up to 60 km) into the Ukrainian territory and vice versa. 
EU  wagon  owners  have  however  been  hesitant  until  now  to  allow  their  rolling  stock  and 
vehicles to enter Ukraine. Ukraine has adopted a government decree9 to financially cover the 
cost of damage for lost wagons/barges. However, additional guarantees could be necessary to 
ensure EU operators are encouraged to continue operations. Whether a top-up instrument – to 
be  set  up  by  the  EU,  in  cooperation  with  EU  Member  States  (e.g.  national  export  credit 

6   Such as UIP, ERFA, CER, UIRR, FEPORT, EFIP, ESPO, ESO/EBU, CEMA, ECSA, WSC 
7   E.g. Slovakia has a daily transhipment capacity of 30-40 trains on European gauge (with a potential to 50-60 
trains)  that  is  not  yet  used,  there  is  an  EU  standard-gauge  line  from  Poland  to  Kaunas,  Lithuania,  where 
transhipment capacity exists). Klaipeda port has ice-free port capacity all year round. 

8   Such  machines  can  load  two  wagons  (130  t)  per  hour  (90,000  tonnes  a  month)  and  several  machines  can 

work parallel along a train. With a relative low level in investment, transhipment can be scaled up. 

9   Cabinet 

of  Ministers 

of 

Ukraine 

Order 

of  March 

30, 

2022  № 

255-r 

(https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/255-2022-%D1%80#Text) 

4 

 
 
 
 
                                                           
agencies),  or  by  international  financial  institutions10  –  would  be  needed  to  offer  additional 
guarantees  for  using  transhipment  capacities  on  both  side  of  the  border  will  need  to  be 
investigated.  

Other  options  –  such  as  road  transport  –  should  also  be  considered.  This  will  necessitate 
overcoming some of the current limitations linked to transit permits, driver tachograph cards, 
driving  licences,  certificates  of  professional  competence,  or  other  rules  hindering  the 
operation  of  Ukrainian  lorries  and  drivers  in  the  EU.  Appropriate  simplifications,  including 
guarantees,  should  be  also  considered  in  order  to  facilitate  the  operation  of  EU  lorries  in 
Ukraine.  The  Commission  adopted  on  6  April  2022  a  recommendation11  to  the  Council  to 
open  negotiations  on  a  road  transport  agreement  with  Ukraine,  which  beyond  its  initial 
duration could apply for as long as the impact of Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine 
on  transport  infrastructures  and  operations  remains  severe.  The  recommendation12  aims  at 
granting  Ukrainian  and  EU  hauliers  certain  access  rights  regarding  transit  and  bilateral 
operations between the respective territories.  

Actions: 
(4)  The  Commission  calls  for  prioritisation  of  Ukrainian  agricultural  export  shipments 
towards  freight corridors with best available capacity. The matchmaking platform under 
Action (2) should assist on a continuous basis in identifying where such capacity exists.  

(5) The Commission calls on infrastructure managers to  make available the necessary rail 
slots between transhipment centres and EU ports. 

(6) The Commission  through the matchmaking platform  will work with  Member States and 
industry  to  identify  the  key  transhipment/gauge  changing  centres  at  and  beyond  EU-
Ukraine  borders  in  order  to  determine  the  way  to  optimise  the  volumes  that  could  be 
transhipped on a daily basis, for bulk and through container transport. 

(7) The Commission calls on market players to urgently produce mobile grain loaders and/or 
lend/sell  such  equipment  to  relevant  transhipment  locations.  The  Commission  will  support 
identifying  existing  availabilities  and  linking  interested  authorities  and  companies  with 
producers of such machinery through the matchmaking platform. 

(8) With the help of the matchmaking platform, the Commission will launch a call of interest 
to EU ports to identify the ones towards which rail and road services could be launched, and 
assess how to give priority to these shipments in ports. 

(9)  The  Commission  will  investigate  further  whether  top-up  guarantees  would  be 
necessary and consider cooperating with EU Member States’ national export credit agencies, 
international financial institutions (e.g. World Bank/EIB/EBRD) and other finance providers 
to establish additional guarantees to support rail freight and inland waterway undertakings and 
wagon as well as lorry owners. 

(10)  The  Commission  will  aim  to  swiftly  conclude  a  road  transport  agreement  with 
Ukraine as soon as the mandate by the Council is granted. 

10   Such as the World Bank that own an expertise in this sector. 
11   COM(2022) 167 final  
12   The same is proposed for Moldova (COM(2022) 168 final). 

5 

 
 
                                                           
(11)  The  Commission  will  monitor  the  developments  of  the  issuance  of  driver  tachograph 
cards,  and  may  provide  additional  guidance  that  will  be  made  available  online13.  National 
Transport  Contact  Points  Network14  will  play  an  important  role  in  this  exercise.  The 
Commission also intends to adopt a legislative proposal for a Regulation laying down specific 
and  temporary  measures  in  view  of  Russia’s  invasion  of  Ukraine  concerning  driver 
documents.  

3.3 

Customs operations and other inspections 

While  we  aim  at  facilitating  logistics,  customs  procedures  are  still  necessary  for  all 
consignments and it may take up to several days to receive customs clearance due to lengthy 
procedures15.  Therefore,  it  appears  urgent  to  determine  which  customs  procedures  are  not 
essential  and  could  be  simplified,  and  to  explore  where  additional  capacity  would  be 
necessary. 

EU legislation does  not require any veterinary or phytosanitary certification either for 
grain  imports  or  for  transit  through  the  EU.  As  part  of  a  national  control  programme, 
Member States may take samples to verify compliance with EU requirements both on imports 
and  on  the  national  market.  Those  controls  must,  however,  be  risk-based,  proportionate 
and non-discriminatory. Currently unfortunately, such checks  may take up to  several  days 
and  may  differ  from  one  border  crossing  point  to  the  other  and  between  Member  States. 
Delays not only impede swift freight forwarding but also mean additional costs to traders and 
transport operators. 

In addition, not all border crossing points are equipped with the number of personnel required 
to  handle  incoming  wagons  24/7.  Improving  capacity  for  the  control  and  inspection 
procedures,  more  proportionate  application  or  exemption  thereof  through  improved 
understanding of the applicable rules would speed up procedures significantly. Hence it 
is  also  necessary  for  Member  States  to  ensure  adequate  staffing  of  officials  on  the  border 
posts  to  accelerate  all  existing  checks,  and  provide  round-the-clock  services  at  all  relevant 
border  crossing  points.  In  addition,  checks  and  inspections  should  be  carried  out  in  places 
other than the border (such as in seaports or at destination).  

The  same  approach  is  to  be  promoted  in  ports  where  administrative,  border,  and  customs 
controls or clearance should be carried out swiftly to minimize the turnaround time of rolling 
stock in the port area. 

The  Commission  encourages  further  simplification  of  the  procedures  concerning  the 
issuance  of  necessary  export  certificates  in  Ukraine.  Streamlining  such  procedures  would 
help to avoid build-up of delays in the transport of grains out of Ukraine. 

13   https://transport.ec.europa.eu/ukraine/keeping-transport-running-smoothly/road-transport_en  
14   This informal network of Ministries of Transport has been established by the Green Lanes Communication 
(2020/C 96 I/01, OJ C 96I, 24.3.2020, p. 1–7) in March 2020 and was re-activated when the aggression of 
Russia started. The network, chaired by the Commission, has been an effective way of  sharing information 
among Member States. 

15   In the medium term, Ukraine will be encouraged to step up the implementation of their Authorised Economic 
Operators programme, join international customs conventions, as well as build capacity of human resources 
and enhance customs equipment on both side of the border between Ukraine and EU. 

6 

 
 
 
                                                           
The EU Advisory Mission Ukraine (EUAM Ukraine) and the EU Border Assistance Mission 
to  Moldova  and  Ukraine  (EUBAM),  in  line  with  their  respective  mandates,  may  provide 
support to Ukrainian border and customs authorities in order to facilitate the entry of goods to 
the EU. 

In  its  guidelines16  for  external  border  management  to  facilitate  border  crossings  at  the  EU-
Ukraine borders, the Commission also recommended that in case the configuration of a border 
crossing  point  allows  for,  and  a  sufficient  number  of  border  and  customs  officers  can  be 
deployed  by  the  Member  States,  the  designation  of  ‘emergency  support  lanes’  for  lorries  is 
encouraged, in order to ensure the continued supply of good and services. 

Actions: 
(12)  The  Commission  with  the  involvement  of  national  authorities  and  the  matchmaking 
platform,  will  identify  bottlenecks  caused  by  EU  or  national  certification  or  other 
procedures and encourage Member States’ customs authorities to adopt measures to address 
them, such as for instance moving controls away from the border.  

(13)  The  Commission  urges  Member  States  to  apply  risk-based,  proportionate  controls  and 
sampling. It invites Member States to apply maximum flexibility or even waive non-essential 
requirements  which  derive  from  national  legislation  on  a  temporary  basis,  and  to  facilitate 
administrative procedures to minimise administrative burden.  

(14)  Member  States  should  ensure  adequate  capacity  and  presence  of  border  control, 
customs officials, phytosanitary and veterinary inspectors on the borders to accelerate the 
control procedures.  

(15)  The  Commission  will  convene  regular  meetings  to  address  any  emerging  issues  and 
apply  a  coordinated  approach  between  the  Member  States.  Regular  meetings  should  also 
take place with Ukrainian authorities to follow-up the situation and address any bottlenecks. 
The  Commission  will  also  convene  meetings  with  industry  to  ensure  that  no  requests  for 
official certificates are made if not required by the competent authorities of destination. 

3.4 

Storage of goods on the territory of the EU 

While the most important priority is the transfer of agricultural product to seaports, it should 
not  exclude  using  the  storage  capacity  available  in  the  EU  in  order  to  free  it  up  on  the 
Ukrainian side. This could ensure that a buffer is created – preferably in the vicinity of border 
crossing points, stations along the broad gauge lines that are available in  the EU and  in EU 
seaports – and the use of rolling stock is more effective. To this extent, a mapping of storage 
capacity  is  required.  Such  an  assessment  of  the  storage  capacity  in  EU  ports  would  be 
beneficial  not  only  in  the  short  term  but  also  in  the  medium  one  (harvest  summer-autumn 
2022) as a certain number of facilities to store grain in Ukraine may not be accessible or even 
destroyed. 

Action: 
(16) The Commission will assess available storage capacity in the EU and coordinate with 
Member States to help securing more capacity for temporary storage. 

16   Communication from the Commission, Providing operational guidelines for external border management to 

facilitate border crossings at the EU-Ukraine borders, C(2022)1404, 02.03.2022 

7 

 
 
 
                                                           
Medium-and long-term measures  

3.5 

Increasing the infrastructure capacity on the new export corridors 

Beyond the urgency to find alternative routes to cope with the critical issue of grain exports, 
medium  term  measures  should  also  be  implemented  as  soon  as  possible  to  improve  the 
infrastructure (including transhipment and multimodal terminals, and the necessary rail-road 
connections in the relevant ports) in the EU and on the territory of Ukraine and Moldova and 
to increase connectivity with the EU.  

The Commission will continue to assess the current gaps and identify additional bottlenecks. 
For example, some of the border crossing points with double gauge have not been in use for a 
long  time  or  the  capacity  has  been  low  in  the  recent  years.  An  enlarged  operation  would, 
however,  require  these  lines  on  EU  territory  be  urgently  refurbished.  The  2021-
2027 programmes  financed  by  the  Cohesion  Fund  and  the  European  Regional  Development 
Fund (under the  Interreg programmes)17, coupled with the external  financing instruments  of 
the Union, could contribute to the related works with the use of the appropriate procurement 
procedures. Extending the capacity of existing gauge changers for wagons and the capacity of 
transport  infrastructure  at  border  points  is  another  priority,  which  can  also  be  supported  via 
the above-mentioned instruments. 

Action: 
(17)  The  Commission  will  provide  guidance  on  the  available  funding  and  on  the  most 
appropriate  procurement  procedures  to  be  used  in  order  to  support  (re-)building  or 
strengthening infrastructure where quick interventions can bring swift results. 

3.6 

New infrastructure connections 

New  infrastructure  connections  will  need  to  be  established  in  the  framework  of  the 
reconstruction  of  Ukraine,  which  will  go  much  beyond  what  was  so  far  envisaged  in  the 
framework of the  Economic and  Investment  Plan for Ukraine. The assessment of the future 
needs should focus on: 

  upgrading of the cross-border connections (road-road, rail-road and rail-rail) between 
the EU and Ukraine and optimisation and modernisation of transport flows in terms of 
infrastructure capacity, interoperability and efficiency of the border crossing services, 
including  reopening  of  additional  border-crossing  points.  The  necessary  investments 
can be supported by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) programme; 

  developing  new  Trans-European  Transport  (TEN-T)  core  network  corridors 

 

connecting EU to Ukraine and Moldova; 
improving the connectivity and navigability on the Rhine-Danube corridor to ensure a 
more  efficient  traffic  through  a  strengthened  coordination  between  ports  and  river 
authorities in the EU, Ukraine and Moldova. 

CEF  calls  for  proposals  will  allow  to  provide  support  to  projects  improving  the  transport 
connections  between the EU and  Ukraine. There are notably possibilities to  finance railway 

17 Member States will be able to introduce such funding requests in their investment plans which form the basis 
of the operational agreements, thus facilitating funding for projects started after January 2022. 

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connections,  rail-road  and  rail-rail  terminals  (including  ones  to  address  the  gauge  change), 
and projects aiming at facilitating traffic flows at border controls areas at the external border 
of the Union. Projects aimed at increasing navigability on the Danube can also receive support 
through the CEF. Dual use projects for roads and airports are also eligible under the dedicated 
Military Mobility CEF calls. Beyond CEF, an assessment on the other EU funding facilities 
that could be mobilized to cover needs is being carried out. In this context, an assessment is 
currently under way on the feasibility of refurbishing and upgrading with EU funding certain 
border  crossing  points  on  Ukrainian  territory  at  the  EU  border  (e.g.  two  with  Romania  and 
one  with  Slovakia)  with  a  view  to  increase  their  capacity  and  allow  them  to  process  cargo. 
Additional border crossing points could be envisaged in the future. 

Actions  
(18) As part of the ongoing TEN-T  revision18, the Commission  will assess  the extension of 
TEN-T  corridors  in  Ukraine  to  offer  increased  connectivity  with  the  EU  through  the 
development of EU standard-gauge rail lines into both Ukraine and Moldova.  

(19)  In  order  to  prepare  the  ground,  the  Commission  will  adopt  urgently  a  decision  to 
conclude, after being empowered by the Council, a high level agreement with Ukraine on 
the revision of the TEN-T Maps.  

(20)  CEF  call  for  proposals  will  allow  to  focus  support  in  particular  at  projects  aiming  at 
improving  the interoperability  and  connectivity  of  the  Union’s  transport  network  with 
Ukraine. 

4.  Conclusions 

Given  that  the  high  degree  of  uncertainty  and  instability  that  will  prevail  for  as  long  as  the 
Russian war of aggression against Ukraine continues, flexibility, agility and resilience will be 
indispensable  to  keep  transport  routes  and  supply  chains  operational  between  the  EU  and 
Ukraine.  

In the short term, it is essential that Ukraine remains fully integrated in global supply chains 
and agricultural markets.  

Bringing  more  agricultural  products  on  the  world  markets  is  crucial  to  address  mounting 
global  food  insecurity  resulting  from  Russia's  invasion  of  Ukraine  and  its  devastating 
consequences.  In  order  to  absorb  to  the  greatest  extent  possible  the  volumes  that  had 
previously  gone  via  Ukrainian  seaports,  all  transport  modes  have  to  be  mobilised  to  the 
maximum capacity.  

The establishment of EU-Ukraine Solidarity  Lanes  and the other  actions outlined above are 
aimed  to  cover  this  emergency  period  for  Ukrainian  exports  but  they  will  also  play  an 
important  role  to  cover  Ukrainian  needs  for  import  of  essential  goods.  To  implement  these 
actions,  the  Commission  will  work  with  Member  States,  the  Ukrainian  authorities,  EU  and 
Ukrainian  transport  operators,  infrastructure  managers,  owners  of  rolling  stock,  vessels  and 
vehicles, international financial institutions and other relevant stakeholders across the region. 

18   https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_21_6776  

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