ESPO asks the next politicians of the EU to support and to value the European ports



To single three days from the elections for I renew of the Parliament of the European Union, in a moment in which the EU - as never in its young history - it is threatened by the sovraniste thrusts that churn many communitarian States whose main objective to out of the respective national borders only seems to be that to dismantle the federal system laboriously constructed after according to world-wide conflict and bringing back pointers of the clock behind of seventy years, was completely improbable that the association of the European ports, today reunited in conclave anniversary to Livorno, faced the problematicità that characterize the various European systems harbour, criticality that in times much better they are faced with hard work and almost without outcome within the European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO).

So also today the association has gone out of one's way to not to exalt the differences, but if not in order to value the role of the industry of the ports to beyond the divergences that oppose the various orders of the harbour systems of the continent. An industry that ESPO has emphasized to be one of the main engines of the European economy. A role wide-ranging that it goes to beyond the limits of the harbour Federal property, as the president of the association has emphasized: "for us - Eamonn O'Reilly has explained, that he is managing director of the Dublin Port Company - the days in which the Harbour Authority it acted simply from supervisor are ended. The ports - it has specified - must engage with industries and operators who work with the ports in order to influence and to govern the enormous changes that will happen: climatic changes, sustainability, digitalisation and volatility of the world-wide commerce let alone geopolitical scene. We are - it has concluded O'Reilly - very in favor of any politics that allows with the ports to develop itself ulteriorly and to contribute to answer today to the challenges".

The Irish president of ESPO speaks about "any politics" and in fact in the memorandum that today the association has introduced in sight of the European elections not specific at all which it is for ESPO the better politics for the ports. A thing is specified only: "the memorandum - Isabelle Ryckbost has confirmed, general secretary of the association - explains as the ports can contribute to the competitiveness of Europe. It is - it has added the Ryckbost - more than a simple list of the expense of that the European must or less to make for the European ports".

But ESPO, perhaps not being able to delineate precise policies in portualità topic is for the unsolved internal divergences is for the stopped mail from imminent the crucial electoral round, if it does not speak directly about expenses, speaks about investments, that they are the same thing if not for the produced result. Result that ESPO assures to be absolutely profitable if the money is employed in order to favor the development of the ports. A development that but the same ports they want to directly be able to favor: from here the demand for the association of a greater autonomy financial institution of the ports.

But ESPO has evidenced also the importance of the concrete one directed assistance financial institution of the EU to the field of the transports, rimarcando the necessity to guarantee deep consisting to program CEF (Mechanism in order To connect Europe) to the aim to complete the infrastructural net TRIES and to assure the digitalisation and the decarbonizzazione of the field of the transport. A support that, regarding the ports, according to ESPO would have but to be more substantial: "the ports - ESPO in its memorandum clarifies - deserve more of the quota 4% of budget CEF".

In general terms the document of the association of the European ports appears to be an appeal turned to the next ones eurodeputati and to the next EU commission to promote the increase of the role of the ports which they fly of the economy of the EU. To elections concluded is favorable that ESPO resumes also walks along the difficult road of a greater harmonization of the entire European harbour system. If this will happen, it will mean that nationalisms and localisms will not be successful to make to pieces the more important European political project of according to post-war period.

Bruno Bellio