On July 4, 2025, the Latvia–Lithuania Programme, together with other Interreg and transnational programmes whose participating countries share borders with Belarus and Russia, took part in a meeting organised by Interact with representatives of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG Regio).
As preparations for the new European Union financing period beyond 2027 are already underway, the meeting in Riga aimed to exchange experiences on current implementation practices, challenges, and solutions of Interreg programmes, as well as to foster dialogue on the strategic needs and priorities of these programmes in the future.
Representatives of DG Regio acknowledged that supporting regions bordering Russia and Belarus is currently one of the European Commission’s key priorities and that special attention will be given to ensuring that the future Interreg framework continues to promote the inclusion, balanced development, and cross-border cooperation of these external border regions of the EU.