Dear Commissioner Kos, dear Marta,

Dear Minister Jevšek, dear Aleksander,

Dear President Fedriga, dear Massimiliano, thank you for your hospitality today.

Dear experts and participants,

Welcome to all of you. It is a pleasure to be here today.

First of all, I would like to thank DG Regio, especially Director Tokarski and everyone involved in organizing this important event.

The cities of Nova Gorica and Gorizia are united as the 2025 European Capital of Culture. This is the first time this honor has been awarded to twin cities.

This kind of cross-border cooperation is what we also aim for with Interreg, our topic today.

Since 1990, Interreg has grown from a small Community Initiative to become a recognized brand of cohesion policy.

Indeed, it is a key part of our European cohesion policy.

Over the years, with Interreg programs, we have invested billions of euros and worked on thousands of projects with countless partners.

With the support of Interreg, we have built strong bridges between communities.

We have created, for instance, joint innovation networks, tourism projects, and firefighting services. And we will continue on this path.

Interreg should continue to connect regions, but it also must promote investment.

And we need to look at how to improve it and align with the EUs new priorities.