European Union

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Written by Anna Flynn.

Parliament has, on many occasions, supported the EU’s active role in ocean governance. the Commission adopted the European Ocean Pact in June 2025. It serves as a non-legislative framework for all ocean-related policies, covering a wide range of issues such as research, maritime security, ocean health, coastal communities, and more.

A proposal for an EU ocean act is expected by 2027.

Notably, throughout 2025, Parliament gave its consent to a number of fisheries agreements with third countries. An important example is the protocol with Greenland. Moreover, the approved EU-Côte d’Ivoire agreement is significant for the EU’s tuna fleet.

Since July 2025, citizens have written to the President of the European Parliament to call for higher standards and stronger regulation of EU fishing practices outside the Union. In response, EPRS highlighted that the EU’s agreements with third countries promote local sustainability, conservation and development.

For instance, in the agreement with Guinea-Bissau, €4.5 million is allocated to the country’s fishing sector – namely towards control and surveillance capacities, as well as for communities in the region. Moreover, the agreement with Cabo Verde is viewed by the Parliament’s Committee on Fisheries as balanced; due to the fact that the EU’s financial contributions are higher than the cost of the access rights.

In July 2025, Parliament adopted a text agreed with the Council on improving the EU’s measures tackling third countries’ unsustainable practices concerning shared fish stocks. These are stocks that are not limited to the waters of a single country. This means that there is now clarity on exactly what actions are subject to EU penalties.

Beyond fisheries, in 2025, the Parliament also adopted its position on the Commission’s proposed directive on the high seas.

This directive integrates the UN’s High Seas Treaty into EU legislation. The treaty protects marine biodiversity beyond country’s borders. No nation has jurisdiction over nearly two thirds of the ocean, and the high seas make up a large part of this.

Parliament’s report amends the proposal by suggesting that Member States need to publish their actions in the high seas (related to biodiversity). The objective of this is to improve transparency. However, MEPs also called for greater flexibility in reporting.

In the same week, Parliament also adopted a provisional agreement on expanding the European Maritime Safety Agency’s (EMSA) mandate. The aim of the proposed regulation is to strengthen EMSA’s ability to tackle security risks by broadening its remit. For example. the agreement introduces a flexibility mechanism so that the agency can undertake additional tasks for the Commission and Member States.

Post-2027, there is no separate fund outlined for the common fisheries policy (CFP). Currently, there is a European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) for the 2021-2027 period – but in July 2025, the Commission proposed merging this with other policies, such as agriculture. This means that there would be no specific, allocated sum of money for this sector. The CFP encompasses ‘conservation of marine biological resources’ – one of only five areas in which the EU has exclusive competence.

Links to EPRS publications

• Plenary round-up – November I 2025
• Protecting marine biodiversity in the high seas
• Revision of the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA) founding regulation
• Conditions for EU support to the CFP (2028-2034 programming period)
• Sustainable fishing outside the European Union – answering citizens’ concerns
• EU-Côte d’Ivoire fisheries agreement
• EU fisheries agreement with Greenland: Conclusion of a new protocol (2025-2030)
• Measures against countries that do not cooperate on shared fish stocks
• The European ocean pact
• EU fisheries agreement with Guinea-Bissau
• EU fisheries agreement with Cabo Verde: Conclusion of a new protocol (2024-2029)

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Written by Anna Flynn.

The EU strongly condemned Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine on 24 February 2022. By July 2025, the civilian death toll in Ukraine had exceeded 13 800, according to the UN. Now, nearly four years later, the EU has provided €187.3 billion in support for Ukraine, and this response marks the Union’s largest civil protection operation to date.

EPRS notes that ‘the ongoing attack has reverberated beyond Ukraine’s borders, affecting food security, energy prices and inflation both in the EU and beyond’. The European Parliament labelled Russia’s war ‘the most outrageous act of aggression conducted by the political leadership of a given country in Europe since 1945.’ The  EU’s response  has been structured along three axes: political, economic and military support for Ukraine; isolation and containment of Russia; and enhancement of EU and EU neighbours’ resilience.

Parliament’s extraordinary meeting of 1 March 2022, at which it adopted a resolution unequivocally condemning Russia’s aggression and setting the direction for EU action, was one of the first international gatherings that Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, attended. Parliament’s President, Roberta Metsola, was the first EU leader to visit Kyiv, on 1 April 2022. In September 2025, Metsola officially opened a permanent European Parliament liaison office in Kyiv. 

Since the start of the war, Parliament has dealt with multiple legislative files of paramount importance for Ukraine and adopted numerous non-legislative resolutions on aspects of EU support for the country; including several rounds of macro-financial assistance, the Act in support of ammunition production (ASAP); and the Ukraine Facility, which earmarks €50 billion for Ukraine’s reconstruction from 2024 to 2027.

Parliament has also unwaveringly supported Ukraine’s EU membership aspirations, advocating successfully in June 2022 for Ukraine to be granted candidate country status, and in December 2023 for Member States to start accession negotiations. During EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Association Committee meetings, Members and their Ukrainian counterparts have discussed parliamentary follow-up of Ukraine’s official accession request. Accession negotiations have not properly started due to lack of required unanimity in the Council. However, in April 2025, Parliament called for the acceleration of the screening process that would allow these discussions to begin.

Moreover, Parliament has used its powers to advocate a tougher policy of containment towards Russia. A huge discussion has centred around the possibility of the EU using immobilised Russian assets (of the Central Bank of Russia) to finance Ukraine’s reconstruction. This money has been frozen since the war began. The European Parliament has repeatedly called for the assets (amounting to around €300 billion) to be used. However, it is a divisive issue due to potential economic, legal, and reputational consequences. On 12 December 2025, the Council adopted a regulation indefinitely prohibiting the transfer of any of the assets.

On 19 December 2025, the European Council approved a €90 billion loan to support Ukraine in 2026 and 2027. Without this, Ukraine was expected to run out of funds in early 2026. Instead of using Russian assets, this loan is financed through EU borrowing secured on the ‘headroom’ in the EU’s budget.

Parliament also supports the EU’s sanctions against Russia. The Council recently adopted its 19th comprehensive package of sanctions, containing 69 additional listings. This constitutes companies now subject to asset freezes (that will also be ineligible for further disbursement of funds), as well as individuals who now face travel bans.

Parliament is therefore employing its budgetary, agenda-setting, external action and law-making powers to mobilise solid EU support for Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s aggression, and to ensure that the EU honours its pledges.

Links

• Financing Ukraine in 2026 and 2027
• State of play: EU support to Ukraine
• Ukraine’s future in the EU
• Examples of Parliament’s impact: 2019 to 2024
• Act in support of ammunition production

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