<h6><strong>Ane Barcos</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, urged this Thursday at the Brussels Transport Council to accelerate cross-border connections between Spain and France, pointing out that “Europe cannot be considered fully connected if the necessary infrastructures are not developed at its borders.”</strong></h4> Puente recalled that Spain has been demanding for some time that France promote connections, especially railway connections, that allow fluid traffic of passenger and freight trains to central Europe. In addition, he highlighted the existence of a binding European infrastructure map that establishes that these connections must be completed before 2030. However, he regretted that the best scenario proposed by the French government places the completion of the works in 2042. For Puente, this delay is “unacceptable.” Therefore, the minister assured that this will be one of the main issues that he will put on the table during the debate with his counterparts, insisting on the need to accelerate the construction processes of said infrastructures. Puente also expressed his concern about the loss of traffic in southern European ports, as a result of the implementation of the Emissions Trading System (ETS) in maritime transport. “We are not against the existence or application of this regulation,” he clarified, reiterating Spain’s commitment to decarbonisation. However, he insisted on the need to carry out exhaustive monitoring and future projections to anticipate possible traffic losses and ensure that southern European ports are not harmed in favour of those in North Africa. In this context, the minister explained that Spain and other countries have signed a joint declaration to alert the European Union about the need to maintain close surveillance regarding this possible problem. The declaration points out that, although southern European ports are currently benefiting from alternative routes caused by the conflicts in the Red Sea, this situation is exceptional and temporary. Puente warned that, once the circumstances have normalised, a significant loss of maritime traffic could occur, especially if North Africa continues to develop infrastructure to capture this traffic. The document therefore urges the European Union to foresee and adopt measures to prevent southern ports from being at a disadvantage compared to their competitors. Finally, Puente called for monitoring investments and projects underway in North Africa, highlighting the importance of acting with foresight to protect the strategic interests of southern European ports. <h5><strong>Building resilient infrastructure against extreme events such as the DANA</strong></h5> One of the priority debates for Spain in this Council is, according to the minister, the need to build resilient infrastructure against extreme weather phenomena. “We have just gone through an extreme weather event, such as the DANA in Valencia,” he said, emphasizing that, together with other similar events that have recently occurred in Europe, it underlines the urgency of designing infrastructure capable of withstanding the impact of increasingly frequent and intense weather phenomena. In this context, Puente stressed the importance of ensuring adequate financing, stating that “it is essential to begin to reflect in the budgets the needs to build resilient infrastructure.” The minister also mentioned his meeting, held on Wednesday before the Transport Council, with the new European Commissioner for Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas. According to Puente, the commissioner “was very receptive to this issue” and expressed great interest in the situation in Valencia and the reconstruction work after the DANA. As an example, Puente highlighted the work underway to rebuild the viaducts that fell after the storm, which are now designed with a structural span capable of withstanding similar climatic events. “Obviously, this will increase the costs of the infrastructure,” acknowledged the minister, stressing that these costs “must be considered by the European Commission.”
