Council agrees to €1028.54 million in disaster relief aid for Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Greece and France

Today the Council agreed to mobilise the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Greece and France, relating to six natural disasters occurred in 2023. The assistance will come from the EU’s 2024 budget.

The European Union Solidarity Fund will be mobilised for a total amount of €1028.54 million in commitment and payment appropriations, including the amount of €231.78 million as advance payments, of which respectively:

• €446.64 million to provide assistance to Italy further to floods caused by extremely intense rainfall in the Emilia-Romagna region in May 2023 (€378.83 million), including the amount of €94.71 million as advance payment, and the Tuscany region in October and November 2023 (€67.81 million)
• €428.41 million to provide assistance to Slovenia further to floods caused by heavy rainfall across the country in August 2023, including the amount of €100 million as advance payment
• €5.20 million to provide assistance to Austria further to floods caused by heavy rainfall in its southern regions in August 2023
• €101.53 million to provide assistance to Greece further to floods caused by the Mediterranean storm “Daniel” in multiple locations in central Greece, particularly in the Thessaly region, in September 2023, including the amount of €25.38 million as advance payment
• €46.76 million to provide assistance to France further to floods caused by heavy rainfall in the former Nord-Pas-de-Calais region in November 2023, including the amount of €11.69 million as advance payment

Next steps

In practice, once the decision has entered into force, the EU will transfer money from the solidarity and emergency aid reserve in its 2024 budget to the so-called EU Solidarity Fund operational budget line, from where it can be paid to the countries that have applied for financial assistance from this fund after being struck by natural disasters.

Background

The EU Solidarity Fund is designed to provide financial assistance in the event of a major disaster in a member state or a country holding accession negotiations with the EU.

• Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Greece and France relating to six natural disasters occurred in 2023
• How the EU responds to crises and builds resilience