Perspective locale și regionale în cadrul punerii în aplicare a strategiei europene de securitate internă ProtectEU

– welcomes the ambition of the ProtectEU strategy and calls for it to become a genuine multilevel model for action based on active cooperation between the EU, the Member States and local and regional authorities;

– stresses that local and regional authorities have key legal, operational and budgetary competences in many Member States, ranging from local police, management of public space, cooperation on education, territorial cybersecurity, civil protection, risk management and prevention of radicalisation;

– stresses the urgent need to fully integrate local and regional authorities into the operational governance of the strategy, in line with the principles of active subsidiarity, multi-level governance, co-construction and territorial solidarity;

– recommends that an EU code on territorial cooperation on internal security be drawn up, formalising the involvement of local and regional authorities in implementing EU law in this area.

– stresses the need to involve local and regional authorities in the governance of critical infrastructure, particularly in port and border areas, in connection with the relevant EU agencies (Frontex, EMSA, EUROPOL);

– calls on the European institutions to formally involve local and regional authorities in the preparation of the 2028-2035 Multiannual Financial Framework to take into consideration their specific needs in terms of security, cybersecurity, territorial resilience, citizenship education and democratic cohesion;

– recommends that the Commission develop an EU local security agenda in conjunction with the European Committee of the Regions to map the needs, capacities and best practices of local and regional authorities regarding security.