European Parliament resolution of 4 October 2023 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Romania and Italy in relation to natural disasters in 2022 and to Türkiye in relation to the earthquakes in February 2023 (COM(2023)0381 — C9-0318/2023 — 2023/0297(BUD))
Date: 2023-10-04
Institutions: Committee on Budgets, Committee on Regional Development, European Parliament
Subjects: European Union Solidarity Fund, Italy, Romania, Türkiye, aid to disaster victims, commitment of expenditure, emergency aid, general budget (EU), natural disaster, payment appropriation








C_202401198EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
Series C













C/2024/1198


23.2.2024






P9_TA(2023)0341
Mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Romania, Italy and Türkiye
European Parliament resolution of 4 October 2023 on the proposal for a decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Romania and Italy in relation to natural disasters in 2022 and to Türkiye in relation to the earthquakes in February 2023 (COM(2023)0381 — C9-0318/2023 — 2023/0297(BUD))
(C/2024/1198)



The European Parliament,






—


having regard to the Commission proposal to the European Parliament and the Council COM(2023)0381 — C9-0318/2023,










—


having regard to Council Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 of 11 November 2002 establishing the European Union Solidarity Fund (1),










—


having regard to Council Regulation (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 of 17 December 2020 laying down the multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 (2), and in particular Article 9 thereof,










—


having regard to the Interinstitutional Agreement of 16 December 2020 between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on budgetary discipline, on cooperation in budgetary matters and on sound financial management, as well as on new own resources, including a roadmap towards the introduction of new own resources (3), and in particular point 10 thereof,










—


having regard to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) special report on global warming of 1,5 oC, its special report on climate change and land, and its special report on the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate,










—


having regard to the Agreement adopted at the 21st Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP21) in Paris on 12 December 2015 (the ‘Paris Agreement’),










—


having regard to its resolution of 18 May 2021 on the review of the European Union Solidarity Fund (4),










—


having regards to its resolution of 15 December 2022 on upscaling the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework: a resilient EU budget fit for new challenges (5),










—


having regard to the report of the Committee on Budgets (A9-0269/2023),










A.


whereas the central regions of Italy were affected by fluvial and flash flood events between 15 and 17 September 2022 resulting in total direct damages estimated by the Italian authorities at EUR 837,56 million;










B.


whereas the south-eastern part of Romania suffered severe drought at the end of June — beginning of July 2022 resulting in total direct damages estimated by the Romanian authorities at EUR 1,31 billion;










C.


whereas two major earthquakes of 7,8Mw and 7,5Mw magnitude (6) hit southern Türkiye in the region of Kahramanmaraş on 6 February 2023 and another powerful earthquake of 6,3 Mw hit the region of Hatay on 20 February 2023 resulting in total direct damages of EUR 78,8 billion according to the Commission;













1.


Expresses its deepest solidarity with all the victims, their families and all the individuals affected by the drought in Romania, the destructive floods in Italy and the earthquakes in Türkiye, as well as with the national, regional and local authorities and non-governmental organisations involved in the relief efforts;












2.


Welcomes the decision as a tangible and visible form of the Union’s solidarity with its citizens and the regions in the affected areas in Romania, Italy and Türkiye; reiterates the importance of communicating to the public the tangible benefits brought about by the the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF), in order to further increase citizens’ trust in Union tools and programmes; calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up communication efforts to improve the public awareness of the interventions done with the financing under the EUSF;












3.


Highlights the increasing number of severe and destructive natural disasters in Europe; underlines that due to climate change extreme weather events such as those observed in Romania and Italy resulting in emergencies are going to further intensify and multiply; stresses that the EUSF is only a curative instrument and that climate change primarily requires a preventive policy in line with the Union’s international commitments and the Green Deal; urges the Union therefore to strengthen its efforts to tackle climate change both in the Union and globally; calls in that regard for a revision of regulations (EC) No 2012/2002 and (EU, Euratom) 2020/2093 to better identify the allocations dedicated to the Member States and those dedicated to the third countries due to the limited amount of EUSF resources;












4.


Highlights that the Solidarity and Emergency Aid Reserve (SEAR) is constantly exhausted and does therefore not enough to compensate the consequences of man-made and natural disasters particularly disasters related to climate change; stresses that funding is insufficient to cover the needs of areas affected by natural disasters; questions on a fundamental level whether the EUSF is adequately adapted to the future consequences of climate change; regrets that the maximum amount available for that EUSF mobilisation is much lower than the potential aid amount that could be covered; reiterates that the available resources for EUSF should be increased substantially as part of the mid-term revision of the multiannual financial framework; urges the Commission to increase the budget of the SEAR and to substantially reinforce the annual budget of the EUSF so that it can adequately respond to the intensification of natural disasters within the Union and provide tangible support to the Member States affected by it in light of the magnitude and the recurrence of these kind of emergencies, particularly emergencies related to climate change;












5.


Urges the Commission to come forward with a model for faster and timely mobilisation of the EUSF including the treatment of the applications, so as to allow the relevant authorities to address the restauration needs as soon as possible; recalls that the awarding, management and implementation of the EUSF grants should be as transparent as possible, and that the grants need to be used in line with the principles of sound financial management; stresses the urgent need to release financial assistance through the EUSF to ensure that support can reach the affected regions in a timely manner and provide the necessary assistance for the operations concerned, as requested by the Member States, such as for infrastructure rehabilitation, rescue services, including firefighting actions, restoration of the affected agricultural areas and provision of water;












6.


Approves the decision annexed to this resolution;












7.


Instructs its President to sign the decision with the President of the Council and arrange for its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union;












8.


Instructs its President to forward this resolution, including its annex, to the Council and the Commission.






(1)  
            OJ L 311, 14.11.2002, p. 3.

(2)  
            OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 11.

(3)  
            OJ L 433 I, 22.12.2020, p. 28.

(4)  
            OJ C 15, 12.1.2022, p. 2.

(5)  
            OJ C 177, 17.5.2023, p. 115.

(6)  Mw — ‘Richter’ seismic magnitude scale or moment magnitude scale.





ANNEX


DECISION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL


on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Romania and Italy in relation to natural disasters in 2022 and to Türkiye in relation to the earthquakes in February 2023


(The text of this annex is not reproduced here since it corresponds to the final act, Decision (EU) 2023/2192.)




ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/1198/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)