MACRO-REGIONAL STRATEGY AND TERRITORIAL COHESION IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

Abstract

The European Union (EU), which aims to promote cross-border cooperation (CBC) through various policies and programs, introduced its first macro-regional strategy (MRS) in 2009 as a new tool that offers an integrated framework and governance for regional cooperation beyond the national scale. With adoption of MRS, the EU seeks to tackle common problems of certain regions at the transnational scale and improve the efficiency of policies by enhancing territorial cooperation and coordination among the local, regional, national and supranational levels and mobilizing the existing cross-border institutions and initiatives. This way, it is intended for achieving a more prosperous space and strengthening the territorial integrity of the EU. Thus, MRS is closely related to territorial cohesion policy that is based on creating a balanced and harmonious societal structure on a place-based approach. In this framework, this study addresses the contribution of MRS to the territorial cohesion of the EU by elaborating on the fundamentals and objectives of territorial cohesion policy and MRS.